KELOWNA, BC – In the much-anticipated final showdown between the UBC Heat and the rival VIU Mariners, the Heat fought to go the distance across a 5 set marathon to capture the Gold Medal (25-27, 25-19, 25-21, 20-25, 15-7). Caitlin Nyhus was named Player of the Match for the Heat, directing the Heat’s offense to the tune of 34 assists while doing her part on defense, finishing with 9 digs. Dani Smith of the Mariners was named her team’s Player of the Match, finishing with a match-high 55 assists along with an impressive 15 digs. Nyhus was also named the Tournament MVP for Women.
The atmosphere was explosive Saturday night when the girls took to the court, and though the Heat were off to an early 5-0 lead in the first set, neither team ever led by more than 5, and the score was neck and neck most of the way. VIU never allowed the Heat’s usually dominating offense to find its flow, and eventually pushed to win the 1st set 27-25.
After going down 0-1, the Heat rallied back to a 25-19 win in the 2nd followed by a 25-21 win in the 3rd. The women trailed for most of the 4th, and weren’t able to keep up with a still-hungry VIU as the Mariners forced a 5th set, winning the 4th 25-20. “Credit to VIU,” said Heat Assistant Coach Karl Enns, “They had a very good game plan going in. We’re a very offensive oriented team, and they kind of shut us down a bit. Our offense was not as sharp as we normally would have liked it.”
When the game was forced into a 5th and final set, the crowd began cheering and jeering the loudest, but the Heat focused in on their goals and came out ready to play, downing the Mariners in a relatively easy fifth set, 15-7 en route to capturing the Gold. “I don’t think the players could hear {the noise],” Coach Enns confessed. “They’re really focused. We probably had about 1100 people there, but the girls…they stayed focused.” Community members, students, and even the other Heat varsity teams packed the stands and circled the gym floor along the track above. “We were really pleased that all the other varsity teams came out to support us.”
It was a perfect ending to a nearly perfect season thus far. “It was a storybook ending,” Enns had concluded. The Heat were fortunate to be given the opportunity to host the BCCAA Championships after Selkirk College dropped out. And it was a satisfying ending to the team’s tenure in the BCCAA, now that it will be moving to Canada West to compete in the CIS next year. First, however, are the CCAA Championships away at University of New Brunswick. “We’re going to rest and recuperate first, though,” said Coach Enns. “But we’ll be back in the gym [for practice] and right back at it on Tuesday.”
The BC conference received Wild Cards for both the Men’s and Women’s teams, and so both the Heat and Mariners have a berth at the Nationals. The CCAA Championships are March 10-12 in Saint John, New Brunswick at UNB.
Box Score Attached.
The Women’s tournament All Star Team: Alex Basso, UBC Okanagan; Myrte Schön, UBC Okanagan; Lindsay McLoughlin, Vancouver Island; Dani Smith, Vancouver Island; Shenise Power, Vancouver Island; Kendra Thomson, Capilano.
The Women’s tournament MVP: Caitlin Nyhus, UBC Okanagan.
For live webcasts and game results go to: goheat.ca/volleyball
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