The Dinos women’s volleyball team closed out the regular season with a pair of games against the team they will face in the first round of playoffs — the University of Alberta Pandas. Both matches were close and potentially foreshadow what the Dinos can expect next weekend.
The Dinos took a close match 3-2 (17-25, 26-24, 21-25, 26-24, 15-12) on Friday night. Despite being down 2-1 in the third set, the Dinos battled back to win.
Women’s volleyball head coach Jesse Knight said the Dinos didn’t play their best volleyball on Friday night, but managed to adjust and get the job done.
“I think the U of A did a great job of making us uncomfortable,” said Knight. “They added a lot of tips and a lot of balance in their swings. They weren’t always just going for it which, we’re a good blocking team, which threw our block read and timing off.”
Sarah Moncks led the Dinos with 13 kills and 19 digs. Melanie Miazga led the team in kills with 14.
The Pandas were led by Tiffany Proudfoot with 15 kills and 10 digs and Krista Zubick who had 10 kills and nine digs.
Saturday’s game was close until the last two sets when the Golden Pandas delivered two dominant performances to win it 3-2 (25-17, 22-25, 25-27, 25-17, 15-6) over the Dinos.
“Saturday night both teams played better,” said Knight. “I felt like we were in full control in the second and third and U of A adjusted in the fourth.”
Lindsay Russel led the Dinos in kills with 16. Moncks had 12 kills and 17 digs and Lindsey Doland had 12 kills and 15 digs.
The Dinos finished the season with a 10-8 conference record and are ranked sixth in CW and CIS. They face the Golden Pandas in a best of three Canada West quarterfinal.
“When the Alberta and the University of Calgary play, it’s always that close so I don’t expect any different,” said Knight. “Now having played them and been able to adjust it will make us a little more prepared for them.”