SPARTANS OPEN POST-SEASON VERSUS PANDAS-Canada West first round gets underway at David E.

Women's Volleyball (Canada West)
Weekend Preview
Tuesday, February 12, 2008

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SPARTANS OPEN POST-SEASON VERSUS PANDAS
Canada West first round gets underway at David E.

LANGLEY, British Columbia- The Trinity Western University Spartans women's volleyball team begins their quest for a National Championship with a best of three Canada West quarter final this Thursday night at the David E. Enarson Gym. The No. 6 Spartans are set to play the No. 4 University of Alberta Pandas, with game time slated for 7 p.m. The game can be heard live on Spartan Web Radio (gospartans.ca), tune in 10 minutes before the game for the pre-game show.

The Spartans made the most of the final weekend of regular season action, beating then No. 2 UBC in both contests, including a five-set marathon on Saturday that lasted nearly three hours. Even with those victories the Spartans needed Alberta to lose one of two games against No. 1 Manitoba to host the first round of playoff action. The two teams played earlier this season at the David E., with the Pandas winning the first game in five sets and the Spartans sweeping the following night.

The Pandas (16-4) offense is led by Jocelyn Blair (4th year, St. Albert, Alta.), who is second in the Canada West with 3.97 kills per game. Setter Darryl Roper (4th year, St. Albert, Alta.) is one of the reasons why Blair is so effective, as she hands out assists to the tune of 10.11 per game, making her one of just two Canada West Setters to do average more than 10 per game. Outside hitter Tiffany Proudfoot (2nd year, Calgary) contributes 2.26 kills per game, while Middle Alexa Berton (3rd year, Saskatoon, Sask.) adds 1.95 kills of her own. Defensively the Pandas are the second in the Canada West in blocking, trailing only TWU, with Berton and Samanthan Wojtkiw (4th year, Morinville, Alta.) shutting down opponents with 1.31 and 0.95 blocks per game respectively. Libero Christine Biggs (5th year, Edmonton) leads the team with three digs per game.

The No.6 Spartans (16-4) seem to peaking at the right time, defeating then No.2 UBC in both contests last weekend to earn the right to host this weekend's match-up. The wins however came with a cost as TWU lost fifth year leftside Saralyn Stel (Delia, Alta.) to a knee injury, which occurred in the final points of Saturday night's match, for the duration of the season.

TWU features a balanced attack up front, with veteran Liz Spear (5th year, Cloverdale, B.C.) leading the team with 2.51 kills. Not far behind Spear are Kim Klassen (3rd year, Abbotsford, B.C.) and Alicia Van Huizen (5th year, Surrey, B.C.) who average 2.45 and 2.41 kills respectively. Team Canada Middle Dayna Jansen Van Doorn (4th year, Langley, B.C.) is a force in all aspects of the game, leading the Canada West in blocks with 1.85 per game in addition to 1.96 kills. Klassen and Spear are also focal points of the conference's top defense, with 1.05 and 0.93 blocks per game each. Setter Keanne Tome (4th year, Delta, B.C.) is playing great volleyball of late, averaging 9.38 assists per game. Tome narrowly missed tying the TWU school record for assists in one game with 55. The record, set by Anna Paddock last season against the Pandas, is 56. Defensively the Spartans spread digging responsibilities around, with four players averaging more than two digs per game in the absence of All-Canadian Julie McLeod (5th year, Surrey, B.C.). Tomel, Van Huizen and Andrea Ball (2nd year, Abbotsford, B.C.) combine to help the Spartans rank second in the Canada West in digs per game.

The two squads will match up again Friday night at 7 p.m. and if necessary Saturday night at 7 p.m. Both matches will be broadcast live on Spartan Web Radio at gospartans.ca.

-TW-

Last Updated: 2008-02-17
Author: Scott Stewart
Email: ssstew@twu.ca