BOX SCORE

CALGARY – On the back of an impressive serving performance and solid play from sophomore setter Jordhynn Guy, the Calgary Dinos recorded a straight-sets victory over the UBC Okanagan Heat (25-21, 25-15, 25-22) to sweep their weekend series Saturday night in the Jack Simpson Gym.

The win moves the Dinos up to 6-6 on the season as they hit the Christmas break, while UBC O falls to 2-8 in its inaugural Canada West season.

After edging the Heat in a five-set thriller Friday, the Dinos came out much more quickly in this one and opened up an early 9-3 lead in the opening set. The Heat clawed back into it but never managed to take the lead back from Calgary, and Maura Hayes punctuated the opening-set victory with back-to-back service aces. And she started the second set with another ace – three of her impressive five on the night.

“We went on a lot of serving runs tonight, and specifically Maura came out on fire, ripping balls aggressively at the seams,” said Natalie Schwartz, head coach of the Dinos. “She was a spark plug and kind of got the rest of the team going with that aggressive serving.

“We had some young girls really stepping up for us tonight,” said Schwartz. “We talked at the start of this year about really competing every day and how nothing's a guarantee for anyone. These girls have worked hard, not just this weekend but all season to get that start, and they were rewarded.”

The second set was all Dinos from start to finish as they hit an impressive 39 per cent against an even zero for the Heat to take it 25-15. The third saw Calgary fall behind 7-2 early, but a 6-1 run evened the score at 8-8. UBC O again took the lead at 22-21, but the Dinos reeled off four straight points to close out the match with a 25-22 win.

Guy, who started a match for the first time this season, had four kills, seven digs, four blocks, an ace, and 34 assists for the Dinos in an impressive performance.

“In addition to how strong and physical she is, she's just always contributing in ways that don't always show up on the stats sheet,” said Schwartz. “She's a huge competitor and a feisty leader for our team.”

Lindsey Doland and Andrea Price had virtually identical stat lines, both finishing with 11 kills to lead the Dinos. Hayes added eight, while Ali Sandholm and Emma Pedersen – also starting her first match of the year – chipped in six each.

UBC Okanagan responded with eight kills from Alex Basso, with Myrte Schon and Brianna Beamish chipping in five each. Middle Kendra Wayling led the team in digs with 11.

Both teams head into the Christmas break before returning to action in January. The Heat wraps up a lengthy eight-match road trip with a visit to Brandon Jan. 13-14, while the Dinos enjoy the bye that week and return to the floor Jan. 20-21 when they host the Saskatchewan Huskies in the Jack Simpson Gym.

-UC-