Tyler Crayston, Brandon University Athletics

BRANDON – The Bobcats clinched home court advantage in the opening round of the Canada West playoffs following a four-set win over the Mount Royal Cougars on Saturday night.
 
BU will host a best-of-three quarter-final series from February 23-25 at the Healthy Living Centre, but their opponent is still up in the air.
 
Brandon came out flying in the first set with a 5-1 run giving them an early 6-3 advantage. At the technical timeout, it was 16-12 BU. The Bobcats held a late 23-19 lead, but the Cougars countered with two straight points. Mount Royal would not get any closer as the Bobcats bounced back to score consecutive points to secure the first set.
 
Mount Royal rebounded in the second with a .400 hitting percentage. The Cougars led 12-8 and 16-12 at the technical timeout. A solid stretch of seven straight points powered the Cougars to even up the match.
 
The Bobcats turned the tables in the third by building leads of 7-3 and 13-8. Mount Royal narrowed the gap to 16-14 at the technical timeout before BU gained a major momentum swing. A 7-1 Bobcats' run directly out of the timeout put them firmly in the drivers seat. Brandon rebounded with a .282 hitting percentage in the third after negative numbers in the second.
 
The fourth set went down to the wire with the two sides all square at 22-22. The Bobcats came through in the clutch by taking the next three to finish off the match.
 
Seth Friesen fired a team-high 18 kills, while Matt Powell and Elliott Viles added 11 apiece for the Bobcats. Reece Dixon had a double-double with 40 assists and 13 digs as BU won their fourth in a row.
 
Mount Royal's Riley Friesen led all scorers with 19 kills.
 
The Bobcats close out their regular season by visiting the Alberta Golden Bears this coming weekend, before the post-season arrives in Brandon.
 
Meanwhile, the Cougars clash with the Dinos in Calgary to wrap up their 2017-18 regular season schedule.

(Photo courtesy: Milana Paddock)