LANGLEY, B.C. – The Spartans national championship defence inched one step closer after Trinity Western picked up a thrilling 3-1 victory over Brandon in Game 3 of the Canada West semifinals Saturday at the Langley Events Centre.
 
The win, which advances TWU to the conference championship game at home next Saturday (8:30 p.m. PT), also clinches the defending national champion Spartans a spot at the U SPORTS championships for the 11^th consecutive season. 
 
TWU recorded 18 service aces as a team in the match, the most in program history over four-sets and second most in a single game in program history. Eric Loeppky (Steinbach, Man.) and Derek Epp (Saskatoon, Sask.) led the way with five aces apiece, tying for seventh-most in a four-set match. 
 
Loeppky contributed game-highs for kills (14) and service aces (5), while Jacob Kern (Edmonton) hit .429 and added 12 kills for TWU (20-2, 4-1).
 
Elliott Viles was again a major part on offence for Brandon (13-9, 3-2), as the fourth-year chipped in with 13 kills, four digs and .258 hitting. Robin Baghdady had seven kills, with Reece Dixon adding a team-high five digs. 
 
After an early 5-5 tie in the first set, the Spartans went on an 8-1 run to take a commanding 13-6 first set lead. The Spartans then took a nine-point lead off a Kern kill to make it 18-9, before maintaining their lead the rest of the way to win the first set 25-17. Kern picked up five kills for TWU, matching his match totals from Friday's game in four fewer sets.
 
Despite Brandon taking the first point of the second set off a Mason Metcalf kill, TWU would take the next five points to force the Bobcats a timeout. The Spartans then took a 12-4 lead after back-to-back aces from Loeppky. A Loeppky kill then sealed the second set once again at 25-17 in TWU's favour. 
 
After the Spartans jumped out to 6-2 lead in the third set, the Bobcats would tie it back up before overtaking TWU with a 9-7 lead. The Spartans would counter to take a 15-12 lead, but Brandon would outscore the Spartans 13-7 the rest of the way to win its first set of the game.
 
The fourth set was an even affair to begin with until TWU took charge, as the Spartans would score eight consecutive points highlighted by a Howe service ace to take a commanding 17-9 lead. Two service aces from Derek Epp (Saskatoon, Sask.) then gave the Spartans a 20-10 lead, before a Dixon error sealed the four-set Spartans victory.
 
QUOTABLE
Ben Josephson – TWU Head Coach
 
"There's definitely a sense of relief for dodging a bullet and getting through an incredible Brandon squad. Those guys got dealt a really tough hand this year with Seth Friesen and Baghdady getting those concussions and obviously Seth couldn't play this weekend. You feel sick for him. He's an incredible human and it's great for volleyball that we have someone like that in the game. But then he defers med school to come back and play this year and it's just unlucky what happened.

"When we saw that we drew Brandon for the semifinal, we knew it was going to be a nightmare of a series and it lived up to it. I'm pumped that we got through but I'm really excited that we had that experience over the last 24 hours, feeling adversity that we haven't seen this year. Today we had to play for our season and that's what every game is like at the national tournament. That was such a perfect series to launch us into the final two-week phase of the season.
Now we get to have two more weeks of being together as a team. I think the guys said it best. They're partially excited to go win a championship, but I think they're also just excited to have two more weeks together.

"Jacob Kern is the one who needs the biggest credit. He stepped up tonight and changed the entire game. He was so great. Then, the Warden was really dialed in tonight. Then Jesse Elser was the other one. The way those three battled through the pressure Brandon was putting on them was just so special. Then obviously Eric and Jackson and Pearce are the freaks and Colton also found another gear and was incredible.

"This weekend at least shows us what we have to do to have a good run. Whether we do it or not – time will tell."
 
NOTABLE

• TWU was coming off a 3-0 Game 1 win Thursday, before falling to the Bobcats 3-2 in Game 2.
• The Spartans finished the regular season with a 20-2 record atop the conference standings, while Brandon finished fourth at 13-9. 
• The Spartans have won three of the last four Canada West Championships (2016, 2017, 2018) and U SPORTS championships (2016, 2017, 2019). 
• TWU now holds a 23-12 overall record against the Bobcats.
• TWU has now made the U SPORTS Championships for 11 consecutive years, as 2007/08 was the last year the Spartans failed to qualify. 
• The Spartans and Bobcats have met frequently in postseason play, as TWU defeated the Bobcats in the U SPORTS Championship (3-0) last March but lost to Brandon in last year's Canada West Championship (3-2).

 
NEXT UP
The Spartans will look to win their sixth conference championship, and fourth over the last five seasons when they host the winner of UBC and Alberta's Canada West Semifinal series next Saturday (8:30 p.m. PT) at the Langley Events Centre.  
 
About Spartan Athletics
As official members of U SPORTS, the Spartans currently compete in 11 sports in the Canada West conference, including women's and men's soccer, volleyball, basketball, cross country and track & field, as well as women's rugby sevens. TWU also competes in the British Columbia Intercollegiate Hockey League (BCIHL) in men's hockey and as an independent team in men's rugby. The men's and women's hockey programs will begin playing in Canada West and U SPORTS in 2020-21. Since TWU entered U SPORTS in 1999, the Spartans have won 12 U SPORTS team championships and 27 Canada West team championships and two BCIHL championships.
 
-TW-