WolfPack MVB drop season opener to defending Canada West champs
For Immediate Release: October 18 2019
 
The Thompson Rivers University WolfPack kicked off their 2019-20 Canada West with the stiffest of challenges.
They met the defending league champion Bobcats in Brandon on a night where they honored their alumni and raised their Canada West banner. The result on Friday (Oct 18) was a 3-1 Bobcat victory. The scores were 28-26,25-20,21-25, 25-13.
 
The opener saw both teams stave off a series of set points in the first, before the Bobcats prevailed in overtime.
 
Brandon built an early 10-7 advantage in the second set thanks to a 4-0 run. Thompson Rivers rallied to take a 16-15 lead at the technical timeout and padded their lead with three straight points. The Bobcats got back on track with mini runs of 5-0 and 4-0 to give them the nod in the middle frame.
 
The WolfPack used a sparkling .333 hitting percentage to stay alive in the third. Thompson Rivers opened the third set with the first three points and maintained that point spread at the technical timeout up 16-13. The Bobcats got the lead back at 18-17, but the WolfPack regained the momentum with a 4-0 run to stay alive in the match.
 
The Bobcats dominated the fourth set from start to finish. They opened with a 4-0 lead and doubled it to 16-8 at the technical timeout. Brandon won eight of the next 10 points to sit firmly in the driver's seat.

Seth Friesen had 11 kills while Robin Baghdady added 10 kills for the Bobcats. Jake Fleming got the start at setter with conference all-star Reece Dixon sidelined with injury. Fleming finished with 29 assists and two service aces.
 
"I thought we showed a lot of fight," said Fleming. "We got down after a couple of runs but we got right back into it. I really loved that part of our game."
 
Meanwhile, Charlie Bringloe (4^th year, outside hitter, Waterloo, ON  scored a match-high 15 kills in a losing cause for the WolfPack and Sam Taylor Parks (5^th year, middle, Kelowna, BC) was involved in eight total blocks for Thompson Rivers.


"We stepped up our game on defence," said Taylor Parks. "We were covering tips and swings and getting solid touches on the blocks. I believe that was a positive step in the right direction."  He added two service aces.

Rookie Nimo Benne had 10 kills . Anton Napolitano (4^th year, setter, Victoria, AUS) had 30 assists, eight digs and two service aces.
Says WolfPack head coach Pat Hennelly, "We had a solid first three sets. Big leads late in the first and second. Brandon showed great composure. Charlie was very solid all around and Kyle Behiels was good from the service line. We needed a bit more finish and composure at the end of the first two sets. Would have been nice to win the first one. Overall, the guys battled  well versus a good team and a big crowd. Solid start."

The same two teams will play again Saturday (Oct 19) in Brandon.  The Pack return home to host the University of Calgary Dinos on Friday October 28 th at the Tournament Capital Centre.
 
(with help from Brandon University Sports Information)