LANGLEY, British Columbia– Led by fourth-year outside Maryn Boldon's (Okotoks, Alta.) 14 kills,10 digs, and two blocks, the Trinity Western Spartans defeated the Mount Royal 3-0 Friday night at the Langley Events Centre in Langley, B.C. The win improves TWU to 14-5, while the loss drops the MRU to 4-15.
 
Fifth-year middle Kaylee Plouffe (Sherwood Park, Alta.) with nine kills, three aces, and two blocks also had a strong match for the Spartans. Sydney Scatcherd, with 11 kills and one service ace, led the Cougars.
 
TWU second-year setter Tayana Dmitruk (Surrey, B.C.) ran the Spartan attack, finishing with 26 set assists. Mount Royal's Taryn Sieben finished with 18 set assists for the Cougars.
 
UP NEXT
The Spartans and Cougars will finish off the Canada West conference season at 3 p.m. (PT) at the Langley Events Centre. The game can be seen live on Canada West TV. TWU is the host of the U SPORTS championship, which begins March 13 at the Langley Events Centre.

QUOTABLE
Ryan Hofer, TWU Head Coach
"Really pleased with our serving package. Just forcing them to play by putting some pressure on Mount Royal with our serve. And then just doing a really good job on the reception game. ?I thought Mikayla McBain did a really good job of organizing her receivers, getting the ball up so that we could take good quality swings. For tomorrow, there are a few adjustments that we can make, and I think there are certain aspects of what we would like to play against MRU that we can adjust to."

AS IT HAPPENED
The Spartans came out strong and jumped out to a quick 6-1 lead after a Boldon kill. TWU continued to control the set and extended their lead to 16-9 after an Isabella Stothart kill. MRU took a timeout and out of the break went on a 4-0 run to cut the lead to three points, 16-13, after a Bronwynn Davis-Neira and Faith Obasi block. From there, the teams exchanged points. Then, with the Spartans up 20-17, TWU would go on a 5-1 run to close out the set 25-18 on a Kaylee Plouffe kill to give TWU the opening set. Led by Boldon's nine kills, TWU finished the set hitting at .244 (17-6-45), while MRU finished at .182 (10-4-33).
 
The second set was evenly played for most of the game, with both teams tied at 12-12. TWU gained separation after scoring three straight points and, after Plouffe's kill, led 15-12. After exchanging points, MRU went on a mini run to tie the set at 19-19 after a TWU attack error. But the Spartans again closed out the set with a 6-1 run, with a Plouffe kill giving the Spartans the set 25-20, and a 2-0 set lead. TWU hit at .167 (12-5-42), MRU hit at .229 (12-4-35) in the set.
 
The Spartans were dominant to start the third set and jumped out to a quick 7-0 lead. TWU expanded the lead to 12-1 after an Isabella Stothart kill. MRU looked to get back in the set and cut the lead to seven points, 14-7, with a 6-2 run. But the Spartans regained control and finished of the set 25- and the match 3-0. TWU finished the final set hitting at .185 (11-6-27), while MRU finished at -.154 (3-7-26).
 
 
NOTABLE

• The Spartans finished the night hitting at .202 (40-17-114) while the Cougars finished at .106 (25-15-94).
• The Spartans had the edge in service aces, 10-2.
• TWU had the edge in blocks 5-4 and digs 49-40.
• The Spartans are currently 33-3 lifetime against the Mount Royal Cougars.
• The Spartans have won their last six conference matches against the Cougars.
• TWU has not played MRU in conference play in two years, when the Spartans swept the Cougars 3-1 on both nights in Langley, B.C., on January 5-6.
• The Spartans are coming into this weekend's matches after a bye week. The week prior, the Spartans swept the Regina Cougars 3-0 on both nights at home at the Langley Events Centre in Langley, B.C.
• Last week, the Cougars were swept by the Calgary Dinos, losing 3-1 on both nights at home in Calgary, Alta.
• Women's Volleyball hosts the U SPORTS championships beginning March 13 at the Langley Events Centre in Langley, B.C.

 
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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