Cougars Catchup: January 27

Only three Cougars teams were in action last weekend, with the men’s volleyball team traveling to Kelowna to take on the University of British Columbia Okanagan Heat and the basketball teams hosting the University of Calgary Dinos. Find out how the men’s volleyball team did on their road trip below.

MVB: Friday, Jan. 24 vs UBCO Heat

The MRU Cougars men’s volleyball team rolled into Kelowna to take on the UBCO Heat on Friday, Jan. 24, but were unable to grab a win as they lost in three sets (11-25, 20-25, 26-28).

The Cougars and Heat opened the first set with a 7-7 standoff, trading kills back and forth. UBCO soon enacted a 4-0 run to force an MRU timeout; that didn’t stop the Heat, though, who went on an 11-2 run to take a 22-9 lead. The Cougars scored two more points before losing the first set 11-25.

MRU opened up the second set with an 8-4 run, but UBCO responded with a 5-1 streak of their own. Still, the Cougars refused to relinquish their lead for the majority of the set, holding a 15-12 lead halfway through set two. The Heat then found some momentum and used their blocking ability to create a 6-1 run and take an 18-16 lead. MRU stayed close, keeping the deficit to two points or less until the Heat closed out the set with four unanswered points, handing the Cougars a 20-25 loss in the second set.

The third set was the closest of the night, even requiring extra points to decide a winner. MRU played their best volleyball of the night and the majority of the set was played within a three-point differential. The two sides traded kills and errors as they fought for control, which the Cougars took late in the set with their 20-17 lead. However, the Heat proved their mettle in the most crucial part of the set, closing it out with an 11-6 run and handing MRU a 26-28 set loss and 0-3 match loss.

Ryan John was the most prolific attacker for the Cougars, posting a team-high nine kills, helped out by Grant Hill’s team-best 18 assists, and Paul Dionne served up a team-leading two aces. On defense, Hill picked up five blocks while Marek Janutka made seven digs. 

MVB: Saturday, Jan. 25 vs UBCO Heat

The Cougars men’s volleyball team played a much closer match on Saturday night, winning two sets against the UBCO Heat. However, despite their improved performance, MRU could not secure the win as the Heat handed them a 2-3 loss (25-20, 21-25, 21-25, 26-24, 11-15).

MRU put themselves on the front foot early in the first set, taking a 3-2 lead early and holding onto it for the entire set. The Heat stayed close but never overtook the Cougars, who won the set 25-20. 

The Heat scored first in the second set and enacted a 10-5 run. The Cougars scored in retaliation, but UBCO remained firmly in control as they never relinquished the lead, even holding a 10 point advantage at one point. MRU made a late run in the set but it was not enough as they took a 21-25 loss. 

Despite ending in the same score line, the second and third set could not have been more different. The Cougars never let the Heat hold more than a six-point advantage in the third set, but were unable to overcome their deficit and lost 21-25.

UBCO opened the fourth set with a 14-9 run, but MRU responded with a 10-4 run of their own to steal a 19-18 lead. The Heat and Cougars traded points back and forth in a deadlock until Ryan John’s late kill and Isaac Karstand’s game-winning block sealed 26-24 fourth-set victory for MRU.

MRU and UBCO were locked into a tight battle through the first half of the last set, staying tied until the 5-5 mark. The Heat then opened up a 5-0 run to take a 10-5 lead, and even though the Cougars closed it down to a two-point deficit late in the set, they couldn’t string together enough consecutive scores as they lost the final set 11-15 and conceded a 2-3 match defeat.

Cody Hudson was on fire all night, dropping 16 kills and five blocks, both of which were team-highs. Grant Hill’s team-best 40 assists and Jovan Stepanovic’s team-leading three aces supplemented the Cougars much-improved offensive efforts, while Marek Janutka was MRU’s top digger for a second consecutive game, posting nine digs in the loss.

The MRU Cougars men’s volleyball team will return home for their next game as they host the MacEwan University Griffins on Friday, Jan. 31 at 6 p.m. at Kenyon Court and live on Canada West TV.