Tyler Crayston, Brandon University Athletics

BRANDON – The Bobcats and Winnipeg Wesmen are going the distance in their best-of-three Canada West quarter-final series.

Winnipeg battled back from two sets down to defeat BU in a five-set thriller on Saturday night at the Healthy Living Centre.

The set scores were 15-25, 23-25, 25-23, 25-19 and 15-11.

The Bobcats took advantage of four straight Winnipeg attack errors to lead the Wesmen 5-1 in the opener. Brandon continued to gain momentum and led 16-8 at the first-set technical timeout. The Wesmen trimmed the deficit to 17-13 thanks to a quick 5-1 burst, but the Bobcats held down the fort to take the first set.

In the second set, a string of five straight points put the Wesmen out in front 17-14. The Bobcats countered with three straight points to tie it 18-18. It was deadlocked 22-22, but Brandon managed to grind out three of the next four points to put themselves in prime position. The Wesmen though had other ideas.

The third set was a mirror image of the second as both teams battled back and forth. It was tied 14-14, 20-20 and then 23-23, before Winnipeg scored critical back-to-back points to keep their season alive.

Winnipeg started to pick up the pace in the fourth set with an offensive flurry of four straight points to go up 9-5. A 5-1 run gave the Wesmen a comfortable cushion at 19-13. Brandon was in the hot seat as Winnipeg rallied all the way back to tie the match.

The Bobcats turned the tables in the fifth set with a 4-1 start, but that lead quickly evaporated. The set was tied 8-8, but Winnipeg put together a huge 5-0 run to lead 13-8. The Bobcats saved a pair of match points, but they could get no closer.

The provincial rivals meet Sunday afternoon in a winner take all showdown with a spot in the conference semifinals on the line.

(Photo courtesy: Milana Paddock)