Dinos win nail-biter in five sets over UBCO

KELOWNA, B.C. — The University of Calgary Dinos women's volleyball team took down the UBCO Heat on the road on Friday night in an absolute nail-biter 3-2 (20-25, 25-18, 25-22, 18-25, 15-13).

Sophia Hansen led the Dinos with 23.0 points, tallying 20 kills on 43 attempts and adding two service aces. Anya Fehr was pivotal in setting up the offence, contributing 34 assists across five games.

The Heat capitalized on Calgary's miscues to take the first set 25-20. UBCO gained from Calgary's six service errors and a crucial service ace by Josipovic, which boosted their mid-set momentum. Despite Hansen landing several key kills, UBCO's blocking efforts, including a crucial block by Josipovic and Funk, kept the Dinos at bay. The set wrapped up with UBCO clinching victory through a service ace.

Calgary turned the tide in the second set, leveraging a series of service aces and attack errors to secure a 25-18 win against UBCO. Hansen delivered two consecutive aces, fueling a 7-3 run that established a commanding lead.

In the third set, Calgary capitalized on six service errors from UBCO to capture a 25-22 advantage with Calgary's effective blocking and UBCO's attack errors contributing to the set win.

The Heat bounced back in the fourth set, capitalizing on Calgary's errors to win 25-18. Josipovic and Funk delivered crucial kills, benefiting from Finseth's sets to keep the momentum with the Heat. Calgary's five service errors and multiple attack errors, including a critical ball handling error at 21-15, hampered their comeback attempts.

UBCO fell 15-13 in the decisive fifth set against Calgary though. The set was marked by a key sequence where Calgary capitalized on a service ace and a series of kills to take a 12-8 lead, prompting two timeouts from UBCO. Despite a late surge, the Dinos clinched the final point on an attack error, sealing the victory.

Looking ahead, the Dinos rematch with the Heat on Saturday, Jan. 10 at 5:30 p.m. MT at the UBCO Gymnasium.