LANGLEY, British Columbia– Led by fourth-year outside Kaden Schmidt (Mississauga, Ont.) with 13 kills, four digs, one ace, and one block, the Trinity Western Spartans earned a 3-0 win over the Saskatchewan Huskies Thursday night at the Langley Events Centre in Langley, B.C. The 25-23, 25-16, 25-17 win gives TWU a 1-0 lead in the series.
 
Third-year outside Piers De Greeff (Victoria, B.C.) with nine kills, two aces, and one dig also had a strong game for the Spartans. Emmitt Graham (Saskatoon, Sask.) and Aaron Elser (Calgary, Alta.), with seven kills each, led the Huskies.
 
TWU fifth-year setter Anselm Rein (Erfurt, Germany) ran the Spartan attack, finishing with 28 set assists. Saskatchewan's Noah Opseth (Birch Hills, Sask.) finished with 25 set assists for the Huskies.
 
UP NEXT
The Spartans and Huskies will match-up again tomorrow at 9:30 p.m. (PT) at the Langley Events Centre, with the match streamed live on Canada West TV.
 
QUOTABLE
Adam Schriemer, TWU Head Coach
"A lot of things were going well. There wasn't really something that we exploited. I think the most impressive part of tonight was just our ability to get through the first set. Saskatchewan was playing really hot in every phase, and we just kind of held on and didn't let the spread get to be to big of a gap. And then from there, we played really clean every phase after that, which is great."
 
Keys to getting the second win.
"It is hard when teams are desperate. I think their best players are going to play great tomorrow, and their best players are awesome. I expect Graham, who's all-Canadian, to have a great night, and their setter to be dialed, and their middles to be much better than they were tonight. So I think we got to find a way to just make their best players, not dominate the game. ?Slow them down."
 
On being healthy and having the whole group together.
"We've been wanting to see this group on the floor, and I think a lot of people have been wanting to see it too. They are such a fun group to watch with those athletic and physical leftsides, allowing Slammer (Rein) to be so creative. Partnered with Will, who is such an athletic player, and Tate is such an athletic player, and then they're just freak show middles, so cool to watch. And I know a lot of people have been wanting to see this lineup out, but it's crazy that we're debuting it in the playoffs, but fun to watch."
 
AS IT HAPPENED
The Huskies had the better of the Spartans in the early going of the opening set and were up 11-7 after a Jacob Baird kill. TWU gradually got back in the game and, with a Jackson Corneil and Schmidt block of Emmett Graham, tied the game at 17-17. From their the teams played side-out ball to 23-23. Then back-to-back points from Willem Van Huizen,  with a kill and service ace, gave TWU the opening set 25-23. TWU hit at .500 (13-1-24), while Saskatchewan hit at .189 (14-7-37) in the opening set.
 
The second set was even early, with the teams tied at 7-7. Then the Spartans used an 11-6 run to take a commanding 18-13 lead after a Schmidt service ace. TWU continued to control the set, finishing the game with a 7-3 run to take the second set 25-16 and a 2-0 match lead. The Spartans hit at .471 (9-1-17), while the Huskies hit at .125 (8-6-16).
 
The Spartans came out strong to start the third set and quickly jumped out to a 10-3 lead. TWU took advantage of multiple Saskatchewan attack errors and were able to extend their lead to 17-9. The Huskies chipped away at the Spartans' lead and, after a Baird kill, had made it a five-point deficit, trailing 17-12, as TWU took a timeout to slow the Saskatchewan rally. After the break, the Spartans regained control and took the final set 25-17 and the match 3-0.
 
 
NOTABLE

• The Spartans finished the night hitting at .452 (33-5-62) while the Huskies finished at .125 (29-20-72).
• TWU had the edge in blocks 4-0, while Saskatchewan had a 20-18 edge in digs.
• The Spartans also led 9-3 in service aces.
• Trinity Western is currently 47-23 lifetime against Saskatchewan.
• The Spartans finished 17-3 in conference play and second place in Canada West, while the Huskies finished 9-11 in CW and in seventh place.
• Earlier this year, the Spartans swept the Huskies 3-1 and 3-0 at the Langley Events Centre in Langley, B.C., on February 6-7.
• Last year, the Spartans lost to the Huskies the best-of-three Canada West play-in series in Saskatoon, Sask., losing 3-1, winning 3-1, and losing 3-0.
• The Spartans had a bye week last week, while the Huskies swept the Brandon Bobcats 3-0 and 3-1 in the play-in series in Saskatoon, Sask.
• The Spartans are led by Canada West first-team all-stars fourth-year outside Kaden Schmidt (Mississauga, Ont.) and fifth-year setter Anselm Rein (Erfurt, Germany), and second-team all-star fifth-year middle Cory Schoenherr (Waterloo, Ont.)
• The Huskies are led by Canada West first-team all-star fifth-year outside Emmett Graham (Saskatoon, Sask.).

 
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.  
 
About Canada West:
As the leading university athletic conference in the country, Canada West is home to student-athletes that excel in the classroom and their communities. The conference is comprised of 17 member institutions spanning from Victoria to Winnipeg, with over 3,200 student-athletes competing across 14 sports. Canada West's mission is to train leaders and build champions by providing leadership in the delivery, regulation, and promotion of university level high performance sports programs throughout western Canada.
  
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