By Nathan Hutton (The Cascade) – Email
Print Edition: October 29, 2014
The men’s and women’s volleyball teams continued their winning ways this weekend with an incredible showing against the College of the Rockies Avalanche.
The women were the first to take to the court both nights, and pulled out convincing wins in three and four sets, respectively. Friday’s action saw the Cascades cruise in three sets against the limited competition the Avalanche put forward. Standout performances from Amy Davidson and Michelle Zygmunt (PacWest female athlete of the week) were some of the highlights of the night.
The Cascades’ Saturday night action highlighted the team’s ability to come from behind and improve every set. In the first set the women trailed by as many as six points, and were unable to consistently serve well. Registering three aces but four serves straight into the net, they lost the set 26-24. They diminished their highest deficit in the second game to five points, which they were able to overcome this time around with a true showcase of resilience. They would go on to trail only once in sets three and four, and win them both, giving the women the four-set victory.
“We played very well,” said coach Dennis Bokenfohr. “The ladies came out to play tonight. By the look of that result, I think we played a lot better than the score showed.”
The Cascades saw strong efforts from a number of players, but it was rookie Kelly Robertson from Regina who excelled; her playing in both games earned her the Cascade volleyball player of the week.
The men also excelled against the Avalanche, and were able to reward first-year head coach Kyle Donen with wins, improving his career record to 3-1, most likely the highest winning percentage of any PacWest men’s volleyball coach.
On the first game of the weekend, the Cascades dominated the net with their size. It was clear that the Avalanche had no answer for 6’8 Robert Koenig, the second year MEI graduate.
The Cascades were able to easily win in three straight sets.
The second game of the weekend seemed — for a while, at least — to be a repeat of the previous night. The Cascades stormed out of the gate, grabbing victories in their first two games, dominating against the Avalanche. Coach Donen would later credit the dominance to the Cascades’ serving.
The third set was highlighted by a long break in the middle, where both teams seemed confused as the referees sorted out some problems with the Avalanche lineup. The Avalanche turned things around this set, knocking down the Cascades and winning the set by 10 points.
It was apparent in the fourth that the Cascades weren’t going to let the game get away from them. They dominated once again in the new style indicative of head coach Kyle Donen.
Donen addressed his newfound coaching success.
“It’s credit to the guys. [They]rebounded this weekend. To get a sweep in our own gym like that is a huge confidence boost for us. We head into a difficult weekend next week, so it is exactly how we want to finish a tough week, and we hope we can carry this momentum into next week.”
Both teams travel to Vancouver Island next week to take on the VIU Mariners. VIU’s men sit at three wins and one loss, and their women invert that stat with 1-3.
