Aaron Martin/UBC Thunderbirds
VANCOUVER – A dominant service game, highlighted by a near-record-setting eight aces from Byron Keturakis, powered the UBC Thunderbirds men's volleyball team (2-0) to a 3-0 sweep of the Manitoba Bisons (0-2) on Friday night at War Memorial Gym.
With their second win of the three-game series, the Thunderbirds punched their ticket to the Canada West semifinals next week.
Already the record-holder for most aces in a single Canada West regular season for the 65 he posted this year, Keturakis continued his dominant form behind the line on Friday night.
The third-year setter's eight total aces in a playoff game are the most since Trinity Western's Chris Meehan did the same in 2006. The count sill stands tied for second all-time in conference history (Josh Howatson, TWU – nine in 2005).
"I thought we did a far better job executing our game plan in all facets," said UBC head coach Kerry MacDonald. "We served a lot better, we passed a lot better, I thought our blocking was a lot more disciplined, we were definitely crisper tonight.
"We obviously take a lot of pride in what we do from the service line. It's been an emphasis for us all season and it was no exception tonight. All guys can get going at any time. At different times tonight one of them got going and it was great to see and definitely made our job a lot easier creating some separation."
Middle Joel Regehr ended atop the T-Birds' kill chart with nine, while Irvan Brar and Fynn McCarthy netted eight apiece, and Keith West notched six.
Outside hitter Scott Vercaigne and left side Adam DeJonckheere, both seniors playing in what turned out to be their final matches for the Bisons, led their team in kills with 10 and six, respectively. Vercaigne also recorded a pair of aces. Setter Jack Mandryk had a team-best 20 assists.
"We came into the match wanting to really stay in the moment and stay focused on the moment," remarked MacDonald. "We did a great job at doing that and our serve-receive allowed us to stay in rhythm offensively and not let them get on any runs."
UBC's efficiency was on point, averaging a hitting percentage of 0.366, with no individual getting below 0.167. The T-Birds led for the vast majority of the evening, with Manitoba never holding more than a single-point advantage in any set.
The Thunderbirds took control of the opening set thanks to a six-point run that made the score 18-10. Five of the six points – including three aces – came with Brar serving.
Manitoba did a great job battling back. A couple of Vercaigne aces forced a UBC timeout with the T-Birds in front 19-16. A kill by Brendan Warren, followed by a combination block from him and Vercaigne got the Bisons within two at 22-20.
However, the home side was able to regroup and earned the next three points to close out the set.
After claiming victory in the opener, the 'Birds really came to play in the second frame.
Spectacular ball movement on the attack gave Brar, Regehr and West ample opportunity to finish – the fifth-year seniors tallied 12 combined kills in that second set alone, outleaping and outworking the Bisons at the net. West also notched a pair of aces in that frame, and his and Brar's service gave Manitoba fits.
Already holding a 16-12 lead in the second, UBC closed the door with a 9-4 run to end the set, with a couple of kills from Jordan DeShane punctuating an impressive showing from the seniors.
The final set was a demonstration in good service –with UBC up 6-4, Keturakis stepped to the back line and dropped four consecutive aces to open up a lead that the 'Birds would never relinquish. Again, the 'Birds put their foots down in the final stages of the set, and Keturakis would add another run of three straight dimes to stretch the UBC lead from 20-14 to 23-14.
Moving onto the next round, UBC will host either the No. 3 seed Alberta Golden Bears, or the sixth-seeded Calgary Dinos in a three-game set March 2-4 at War Memorial Gymnasium.
Manitoba concludes its season with a loss in the quarter-finals after an 11-13 Canada West regular season campaign. The future looks bright as every player on the current roster, with the exception of Vercaigne and DeJonckheere, has at least one year of eligibility remaining, with the vast majority having at least three.
PHOTO: Ben Nelms/UBC Thunderbirds