Jefferson Hagen, MacEwan Athletics
SASKATOON – Desperation can be a difference-maker in a match between two teams of equal calibre.
That's the edge the Saskatchewan Huskies had on Saturday as they cruised to a 3-0 win over the MacEwan Griffins to salvage a split with a team they entered the weekend tied in the Canada West women's volleyball standings with.
MacEwan won 3-1 on Friday night, but lost the rematch in straight sets (26-24, 25-23, 25-21) to fall back into a tie with Saskatchewan in the standings at 9-5. The loss was MacEwan's first since Nov. 2 at Trinity Western, snapping a seven-game winning streak.
"It was a way better feeling coming into Saturday and maybe they played with a little more desperation and we just thought things would go the same way," said MacEwan head coach Ken Briggs. "They didn't. We didn't problem solve as well today.
"There was a lot of little flaws. Saskatchewan was very good, and we were just good, and we can't be like that. They came out with a little more fire."
Neither team hit the ball as efficiently as they did in Friday's match, but the numbers were especially deflating for the Griffins, who fired at just .105 – a far cry from the .200 attacking efficiency they posted in the first match of the series.
The Griffins were led by Lauren Holmes (nine kills, seven digs and three blocks) and Mckenna Stevenson (eight kills, a block and two digs).
"Last night we had great performances from certain people and today we didn't have that from anybody really," said Briggs. "They dictated the game. The scores were close, but we played from behind from the very beginning of the first set. I think we had one lead in the second set; we had game point up 24-22 and ended up losing 26-24. It was just a battle every play.
"They just finished, especially on defence, a lot better. We're disappointed, but we didn't bring it. They dictated the emotion of the game. They dictated how the match went. It's disappointing, but I still feel like a lot of really good things happened (this weekend)."
Saskatchewan was led by Emily Koshinsky, who produced 14 kills and 10 digs, and Olivia Mattern (13 kills and 11 digs).
If there is a teaching moment for the Griffins to learn from it's to become the team with their backs against the wall instead of being beaten by one.
"How do you become that team and play … not desperate but with that little bit of drive? Again, I'm still a big believer in the home-away thing and it's a lot easier for that home team to do that," said Briggs. "It's disappointing, but not in the effort. It was there."
MacEwan next returns home to host the UBC Thunderbirds on Jan. 10-11 at the David Atkinson Gym.
