WINNIPEG – The University of Manitoba Bisons secured a weekend sweep of the University of the Fraser Valley Cascades with a 3-1 victory (25-15, 25-22, 20-25, 25-23) on Friday night at IG Wealth Management Athletic Centre.
The win improved Manitoba to 2-2 on the Canada West season and followed Thursday's four-set home-opening victory over the Cascades. After beginning the year with a pair of losses at Trinity Western, the Bisons have now won back-to-back matches on their newly installed home court.
Manitoba came out strong, limiting Fraser Valley to a .107 hitting percentage in the opening set while building an early lead on the way to a 25-15 victory. The Bisons then edged the Cascades 25-22 in a tightly contested second set to take control of the match.
Fraser Valley responded in the third, hitting .429 as a team and claiming a 25-20 win to extend the match. The fourth set featured six ties and multiple lead changes before Manitoba closed it out 25-23 to complete the weekend sweep.
Lucy Jurgensen led the Bisons offensively with 14 kills on a .480 hitting percentage while adding 11 digs for a double-double. Selma Hodne contributed nine kills and five block assists, while
Bethany Carter added nine kills and eight digs.
Setter
Julia Martens directed the Manitoba offence with 33 assists, eight digs, two service aces and three kills.
Jersey Hansen-Young recorded 11 digs and six kills, while captain
Aviendah Plett contributed four kills, two aces and three blocks.
The Bisons finished with eight team blocks and held Fraser Valley to a .203 attacking percentage. Manitoba also capitalized on 24 Cascades attack errors and committed just two service errors across the four-set match.
Fraser Valley was led by Talia Attieh, who recorded a match-high 18 kills, while Aubrey Gingles added 10.
With the victory, Manitoba completed a four-point weekend against the Cascades and evened its conference record at 2-2 heading into next week's action in Regina.
