Depth and service pressure the story as Bisons sweep MacEwan 3-0

WINNIPEG – The Manitoba Bisons didn’t trail at any point, cruising to a 3-0 win over MacEwan on Friday at IGAC. The win improves their record to 8-11, while the Griffins fell to 1-16. The Herd are currently in a position to host a play-in series two weeks from now.
 
Manitoba’s service pressure, like it’s been all year, was a major factor.
 
The Herd put down 11 aces total, three each from Karil Dadash Adeh, Spencer Grahame and Owen Weekes. Offensively, seven players had at least two kills.
 
“We have a bunch of guys who are capable of doing a bunch of different serves in different types of situations,” said Grahame.
 
“Everyone is really comfortable back there, and I think we all support each other to keep serving our best serves all of the time. It’s been really good.”
 
The Griffins were resilient in defeat, battling all night without their leading attacker Mitchell Croft. They got inspired play from outside hitter Brendon Lord, who had a career-high 14 kills on a .385 hitting percentage.
 
Three straight aces from Dadash Adeh gave the Bisons permanent moment in set one, after Lord kept the hosts in the fight with seven kills. Heppner added an ace of his own to help seal a 25-12 set win.
 
The visitors battled in set two, as the contest went into the 20s. Lord had a solo block, while Jarod Inia and Mason Natras put down important kills, combining for six in the game. The Griffins had their best hitting percentage in set two, at .261, but they hit in the negatives in sets one and three, affected largely by Manitoba’s service pressure.
 
Jonah Dueck added an ace, while the Herd got assisted blocks from seven different players overall to help them close out set two.
 
Rookie Owen Weekes put down three straight aces in set three, as Manitoba opened up an early lead and had momentum throughout in a 25-17 win to close out the game.
 
Daylan Andison had two cross court kills, but the Griffins negative hitting efficiency hurt them throughout, while Manitoba’s depth shone.
 
Middle Tyson Nachtigall subbed in during the third, and put down four kills on a perfect hitting efficiency, while true freshman Benjamin Kuhner also stepped in, and added an assisted block along with steady passing from the back row.
 
“When you get your opportunities, you have to take them,” said Kuhner.
 
“No matter what our guys need, if someone is hurt, or we need a player, our bench is so deep. There’s a lot of talented guys on the roster. Anyone can be ready to go at any time.”
 
Both teams play again tomorrow at 5:45 pm.