Griffins steal defeat from the jaws of victory, falling 3-2 to Winnipeg after leading 2-0

WINNIPEG, Man. – The loss might have been less painful if they'd been blown out.

It certainly wasn't being digested pleasantly in the MacEwan Griffins' locker-room after they blew a 2-0 lead over the Winnipeg Wesmen and lost 3-2 to a team chasing them in the Canada West playoff race on Friday.

"It was extremely disappointing and I told the team that," said Griffins head coach Chris Wandler. "We treated this like a playoff game because it is a playoff game. The emotional and mental involvement was just so lacking from certain individuals. And that just takes a toll on everybody else because they have to pick up the slack."

MacEwan staked out a 2-0 lead after surviving two tight sets – 26-24 and 25-23. But they didn't have that killer instinct to close out the match as Winnipeg roared back with 25-19, 25-20 and 15-12 wins to steal victory from the jaws of defeat. 

"We needed more people involved emotionally and mentally," said Wandler. "It was the same group – Alyshia (Bryks), Kara (Frith) and Payton (Shimoda) – that showed up to play and there were too many (other) free-loaders on the emotional bandwagon."

Frith led the Griffins with 20 kills, three aces, 14 digs and a block for a team-high 23.5 points, while Shimoda had 44 assists, two aces and 12 digs. Bryks chipped in 11 kills, 10 digs and six blocks, while Anika Buys had nine kills and nine blocks, the latter tied for seventh most by a Griffin in a Canada West match.

Winnipeg was led by Brooke Duncalfe, who had 21 kills, and setter Naomi Unger, who recorded 57 assists.

With the result, the Griffins fall to 4-7, while Winnipeg improves to 3-8. The Griffins are barely hanging on to a playoff position, sitting ninth out of 10 qualifiers due to UBCO and Regina each falling to 4-9 after Friday losses.

Still, the Griffins can't afford to lose to teams below them in the standings, making Saturday's rematch (5:45 p.m. MT, Canada West TV) a must-win. They simply have to respond.

"We need to," said Wandler. "Our season's on the line, even though it's only the second match of the second half. There are a certain number of wins that get you into the playoffs and you can't let those moments slip away and be OK with it. You just can't. 

"We've got to regroup and collect ourselves, and be ready to emotionally and mentally empty the tank again tomorrow."