LANGLEY, British Columbia – Third-year outside hitter
Zach Hofer (Langley, B.C.) finished with a career-best 14 kills, nine digs and two service aces to lead the Trinity Western Spartans to a 3-1 win over the Manitoba Bisons Saturday evening at the Langley Events Centre. The Spartans' 25-20, 25-16, 17-25, 25-16 win completes the weekend sweep and improves to 2-0 in Canada West play, while the Bisons fall to 0-2.
Fifth-year outside hitter
Kaden Schmidt (Mississauga, Ont.) added 13 kills and five digs. Third-year middle
Zack Yewchuk (Surrey, B.C.) finished with eight kills on nine attempts without an error, hitting .889, and led TWU with four blocks.
Third-year setter
Willem Van Huizen (Langley, B.C.) recorded 32 assists, four kills, five digs and two aces, while second-year libero
Isaac Navarro (Surrey, B.C.) had a match-high 14 digs.
Wizdom Smith and John Ernst led Manitoba with eight kills apiece, while Kai Boyko added seven. Sammy Ludwig finished with 28 assists and 10 digs. TWU hit .269 with 43 kills and 15 errors on 104 attempts, while Manitoba hit .171 with 39 kills and 20 errors on 111 attempts.
QUOTABLE
Adam Schriemer, TWU Head Coach
"Kaden was on fire again the first set, but after that, we just balanced it up. I think we were really looking for that balance offensively. Obviously, we relied way too much on Kaden last night. ?So I think Hofer stepping up is what we needed with that balance. For him to be that clean just opens up everything for us. So, happy with the response, really happy with Hofer to take that offensive load."?
"I like the way we served. We've had pretty good repeatable pressure. You don't need everyone to be on serving. You can have our three to four guys having a good serving day, then we can put a lot of pressure on them. Which was good. I'm happy with the response in the fourth set too. The third-set breakdown is hard to determine; regardless of what it is, we just have to train to get better and eliminate it. But happy to protect home court and get the two wins."
UP NEXT
The Spartans have a bye next weekend before visiting the Alberta Golden Bears on Friday, November 6, and Saturday, November 7, at the Saville Community Sports Centre in Edmonton. Match times are 7:45 p.m. (PT) Friday and 6:45 p.m. (PT) Saturday, with both matches available live on Canada West TV.
AS IT HAPPENED
TWU turned a 7-5 deficit into a 9-7 lead in the opening set and later moved ahead 19-15. Manitoba pulled within one at 19-18, but Schmidt put down three kills down the stretch before fifth-year outside hitter
Kyden Dmitruk (Surrey, B.C.) served an ace to close out the 25-20 win. The Spartans hit .312 in the set.
The Spartans took control of the second set with a four-point run to lead 12-6, then extended their advantage to 18-9. Hofer had seven kills in the frame as TWU hit .481 with 15 kills and just two errors. A Manitoba service error finished the set 25-16 and gave TWU a 2-0 lead.
Manitoba responded by opening a 6-1 lead in the third set and stretching the margin to 16-6. The Spartans closed to 23-17, but a TWU service error and a Boyko ace gave the Bisons a 25-17 win. Manitoba hit .280, while TWU hit .067.
TWU won the first four points of the fourth set, including an ace from second-year middle
Aiden Vandenheuvel (Puslinch, Ont.), and built an 11-4 lead. The Spartans maintained their advantage, with Hofer's kill setting up match point at 24-16 before a Manitoba setting error secured the 25-16 win.
NOTABLE
- TWU is now 34-23 all-time against Manitoba, including a 28-20 record in Canada West regular season meetings.
- The Spartans have won three straight against the Bisons, including the 2026 Canada West championship final.
- TWU led 41-38 in digs and 9-5 in service aces. Manitoba held a 6.5-6 edge in team blocks. Both teams committed 17 service errors.
- Hofer hit .480 with 14 kills and two errors on 25 attempts.
- Schmidt finished the weekend with 41 kills after recording a career-high 28 on a TWU-record 76 attempts Friday. Navarro had 35 digs over the two matches.
About Spartan Athletics
As official members of U SPORTS, the Spartans currently compete in 13 sports in the Canada West conference, including women's and men's soccer, volleyball, basketball, hockey, cross country and track & field, as well as women's rugby sevens. TWU also competes 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 15 U SPORTS team championships and 35 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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