WolfPack women’s volleyball returns to action with five set win
For Immediate Release: Friday, February 1, 2019
KAMLOOPS, BC—The Thompson Rivers University WolfPack women’s volleyball returned from their bye week and got lots of action in their first match. The Pack had to withstand a charging Brandon Bobcat squad to beat them 3-2 at the Tournament Capital Centre on Friday (Feb 1).
The WolfPack are now 9-10 in Canada West play while Brandon falls to 4-17.
Olga Savenchuk led the way for TRU with 20 kills and 11 digs. Brandon’s big gunner was Nikala Majewski had 25 kills and 18 digs.
SYNOPSIS
The teams exchanged points until, tied at 5, the WolfPack went on a 6-0 run to take the 11-6 lead. Brandon had a run of their own as they scored five straight to cut the deficit to 14-11 before the Pack notched five in a row and won the first set being led by three kills a piece from Kendra Finch (4th year, outside hitter, North Vancouver, BC) and Avery Pottle (3rd year, middle, Uxbridge, ON). Brandon’s top scorers were Danielle Larocque (3rd year middle, Brandon, MB) and Nikala Majewski (5th year, left side, Winnipeg, MB).
The second set saw TRU score the first seven points but Brandon rallied. Still TRU was first to get to the 16 point tech time out first (16-9). The WolfPack were able to pass the ball better than Brandon en route to the seven point victory. Majewski had four kills for the Bobcats in that second frame while TRU was led by Finch with four.
Brandon started to mount a comeback in the third set as Majoewski had 10 kills in that frame and had a 60 percent attack percent to TRU’s 54.
Going to a fourth set, TRU jumped out to a 3-0 lead but the Bobcats rallied to cut the margin to one (7-6). The Bobcats kept chipping away at the WolfPack and tied things at 13 and went into the technical time out 16-14 as they scored five in a row to reach that point total. The resilient Bobcats came back to win the set 25-22 and square the match at two, forcing a fifth set.
In that set, the teams traded points until TRU got two in a row, one on a service ace by Gabriella Podloski (3rd year, outside hitter, Grande Prairie, AB) to lead 8-6 as they switched sides. Brandon clawed back and tied things at nine. Later, tied at 13, TRU’s Morgan Rigelhoff (4th year, outside hitter, St. Albert, AB) came in and dished out a service ace to give the Pack a 14-13 advantage. Brandon’s double block on Olga Savenchuk (1st year, outside hitter,Donetsk, Ukraine) deadlocked the score again at 14. That led them get the next point forcing TRU head coach Chad Grimm to call a time out. The teams scrapped it out again until TRU won the last set 17-15.
VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS:
(being edited)
KEY STATS:
Brandon: 19 12 25 25 15 —2
TRU: 25 25 22 22 17 —3
TRU
Olga Sevenchuk: 20 kills in 44 opportunities, 11 digs, 1 solo block, 1 block assists, 2 assists
Kendra Finch: 14 kills in 45 chances, 9 digs, 1 service ace, 1 block assist
Anastasiya Muzyka: 52 assists, 7 digs, 7 block assists
Gabriella Podolski: 9 kills in 19 opportunities, 6 digs, 3 servce aces
Hali Drezet: 17 digs
BRANDON:
Nakala Majewski: 25 kills in 57 chances, 18 digs, 2 block assists
Rayvn Wiebe: 11 kills in 28 chances, 5 digs
RECORDS:
TRU: 9-10 Brandon 4-17
THEY SAID IT (post match quotes):
TRU head coach Chad Grimm:
On the match: “We started well and that was good thing. We kind of went on cruise control in the middle of the third set a little bit. We back peddled. We served it too easy down the stretch and they passed the ball well. They started to dig it up in the fourth and fifth set and they defended really well. We have to do a better job tomorrow and not start to tip.”
