This past weekend the Bobcats men’s volleyball team were finishing off their playable season in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Bobcats were pitted against the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds. While the Bobcats fought hard, it was unfortunately not hard enough to keep them in the finals, and so the Thunderbirds will be going on to the final four playoffs next weekend, which will be played in Winnipeg.

On Saturday, March 4th, the teams played their first game of the weekend. The Thunderbirds took the lead in the first set, with a set score of 25-21. The Bobcats then made their comeback in the second set, and the two teams rallied for a total of five sets. The set scores (Bobcats-Thunderbirds) were as follows: 21-25, 25-23, 22-25, 26-24, 6-15. While most sets showed the Bobcats as putting up a very strong front, they did falter in the fifth and final set of this game, leaving the Thuderbirds to attain a rather large point advantage. The top four players on the Bobcats’ side for this game were Roy Ching who attained 15 kills and 2 blocks, Elliott Viles who attained 9 kills, 3 aces, and 2 blocks, James Weir who attained 6 kills, 1 ace, and 5 blocks, and Mason Metcalf who attained 6 kills, 2 aces, and 5 blocks.

The Bobcats put up a strong front against the Thunderbirds again on Sunday, March 5th. Unfortunately they once again fell short, and the win went to the Thunderbirds. In the first of five sets the Bobcats took the lead this time, with the Thunderbirds pushing back hard in the second set, and rallying through the rest of the game. The final set scores (Bobcats-Thunderbirds) were as follows: 25-20, 35-37, 12-25, 25-23, 9-15. While a strong front was put up in some sets, the Bobcats unfortunately faltered in the third and fifth, giving the Thunderbirds a rather large point difference. The top four players for the Bobcats during this game were Roy Ching with 13 kills, 3 aces, and 4 blocks, Matt Powell with 10 kills, 1 ace, and 5 blocks, James Weir with 9 kills, 1 ace, and 5 blocks, and Elliott Viles with 9 kills and 7 blocks.

Congratulations to the Bobcats team on their accomplishments this season. While they unfortunately did not make it to the final four, they certainly fought their way through this season, and these last two games especially, and have given Brandon University a name to be proud of.

For more information on team stats, please visit the Bobcats’ website at www.gobobcats.ca.

Republished from The Quill print edition, Volume 107, Issue 24, March 7th, 2017.