EDMONTON, Alta. – The No. 4 Trinity Western Spartans held off the No. 1 Alberta Pandas to earn a five-set win Saturday night at the Saville Community Sports Centre in Edmonton, Alta. The 25-23, 25-22, 24-26, 21-25, 15-12 win improves the Spartans to 7-3, while the loss drops the Pandas to 8-2.
The Spartans jumped out to an early 2-0 lead before the Pandas rallied to tie the match at 2-2. TWU was able to hold off Alberta to take the fifth set and earn the victory, and get the weekend split with the top-ranked Pandas.
Fourth-year outside
Maryn Boldon (Okotoks, Alta.) with 18 kills, 17 digs, and one block, fifth-year middle
Kaylee Plouffe (Sherwood Park, Alta.) with 16 kills, seven digs, six aces, and five blocks, and first-year outside Sienna Dridger with 13 kills, four digs and one block led the Spartans. Laila Johnston with 20 kills, four digs, and three blocks, and Abby Guezen with 20 kills, 13 digs, and four aces led the Pandas.
Third-year setter
Tayana Dmitruk (Surrey, B.C.), with 46 set assists, led the Spartans' attack, while Sophia Magus, with 44 set assists, led the Pandas.
UP NEXT
The next Canada West conference games for the Spartans are on January 9-10, when TWU will host the Thompson Rivers WolfPack at the Langley Events Centre in Langley, B.C.
QUOTABLE
Ryan Hofer, TWU Head Coach
"Super Fun game tonight. I'm really proud of this group, the coaching staff, and all the adjustments we made to come out and respond after last night. There are some players who took heavy volume for us, but I feel there were many who did their jobs, and they did them well. Whether it was on the baseline and our serving, or in our attacking and our efficiency, everything was raised up a little bit, and this team executed very well. So much learning is going on, and it's just neat to see this team learn, not give up, put out tremendous effort, and show incredible resilience on the court."
AS IT HAPPENED
The opening set featured five tie scores and two lead changes. Alberta built early momentum behind Johnston, but the Spartans' efficiency—hitting .342 in the frame—kept them close. Boldon delivered key swings late, and Plouffe's heavy serve forced an overpass that Dridger converted for set point.
Trinity Western again surged late. Alberta's hitting improved to .312, but critical service pressure from Plouffe, including back-to-back aces at 20–18, swung control. Boldon closed the set with a line kill to give TWU a 2–0 lead.
The Pandas refused to fold. Johnston sparked a 6–2 run midway through, and Guezen added consecutive kills to tie the frame at 22–22. A block from Dickson and Magus earned Alberta set point, and Guezen's cross-court finish at 26–24 extended the match.
Alberta delivered one of its cleanest frames, hitting .200 while holding TWU to .080. Guezen produced six kills in the set, and Dickson added two crucial blocks to help Alberta pull away from an 18–18 tie. Johnston's sharp-angle kill sealed the fourth.
The tiebreak opened tightly, with three ties and two lead changes. Plouffe's serving again proved decisive: an ace at 9–7 extended the margin. Alberta closed within 13–12 after a Guezen kill, but consecutive errors allowed TWU to reach match point. Boldon buried the final swing, securing the Spartans' five-set victory.
NOTABLE
- The Spartans finished the night hitting at .257 (58-20-148), while the Pandas finished at .253 (58-18-158).
- TWU had the edge in blocks 11-9, digs 71-56, and service aces 15-12.
- TWU is currently 44-53 lifetime against Alberta.
- Last night the Spartans lost 3-0 to the Pandas, 25-22, 25-18, 25-20.
- The Spartans' last win over the Pandas was 3-0 on January 7, 2023.
- These are the final conference matches of the fall semester for the Spartans.
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, hockey and track & field, as well as women's rugby sevens. TWU also competes as in the NAIA in track and field and cross country and as an independent team in men's rugby and women's and men's disc golf. Since TWU entered U SPORTS in 1999, the Spartans have won 14 U SPORTS team championships and 33 Canada West team championships.
About Trinity Western University
Recognized for quality, TWU has received seven consecutive A+ rankings for Quality of Teaching and Learning, holds three Canada Research Chairs, and wins national championships in U SPORTS. More importantly, lives are changed at TWU through its whole-person, Christ-centred approach to education. With a wide array of undergraduate, graduate, and adult degree-completion programs, TWU equips leaders of character and competence to make a positive impact in the lives of others.
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