CALGARY – Neither team executed all that well and it wasn't particularly entertaining volleyball to watch, but the eighth-ranked University of Calgary Dinos will take the ugly victory after topping the visiting Thompson Rivers WolfPack 3-1 (25-19, 28-30, 26-24, 28-26) Saturday night in the Jack Simpson Gym.

BOX SCORE

The final three sets all went to extra points, with Calgary managing to win two of them despite TRU seeing multiple set point opportunities.

“Despite our poor execution, I'm proud of a gutsy performance by everybody tonight,” said Calgary bench boss Jesse Knight. “TRU played very well defensively and at times were very difficult to stop.”

One of those times came early in the third set after the WolfPack and pulled off a 30-28 second-frame victory. Calgary couldn't get in system and couldn't defend TRU's Kelly Asleson, who led the 'Pack to an 11-2 lead with five kills in the first 13 points.

The Dinos started to chip away at that lead, however, and Sarah Moncks stepped back to serve with her team trailing 15-9. When her run finally ended, Calgary had taken a 16-15 lead and was right back in the thick of it.

“It was important that we just stayed task-oriented during that run,” said Knight. “We decided to just have a 'go-for-it' attitude, and it got us back into it.”

Calgary wasn't out of the woods yet, as TRU went up 24-21 and had four set point opportunities, but the Dinos ended on a 5-0 run thanks to the serving of Ella Valge-Saar and a set-ending block by setter Sarah Lacny.

The fourth followed a similar script, with Calgary coming out on top 28-26 thanks to a powerful cross-court kill by Moncks.

Lindsay Russell, who struggled early in the match, came around late to lead the Dinos with 15 kills on the night with Melanie Miazga adding 14 and Ali Sandholm an even dozen. Sandholm was a monster at the net for Calgary, factoring in 10 of Calgary's 14.5 blocks on the night.

Thompson Rivers was led by 18 kills from Asleson, but she also recorded 12 attack errors. Amanda Frayne was the only other TRU player in double digits with 10 kills. The WolfPack managed just six total blocks and a .096 hitting percentage on the night, while Calgary recorded 14.5 and .245 in those same categories, respectively.

Calgary improves to 8-6 on the season with four matches remaining, moving into a three-way tie with Alberta and Brandon for the fourth and final home playoff slot in the Canada West standings. However, not even a playoff spot is assured for the Dinos, who finish the season with a trip to 9-5 Manitoba followed by a visit from 8-6 Alberta to close out the season. The 2-12 WolfPack, meanwhile, will play out the string at home as they host Winnipeg and UBC.

-UC-