CALGARY – The Dinos swept the WolfPack for the second night in a row at Jack Simpson Gymnasium in a 3-0 (25-16, 25-22, 25-21) win on January 26. 

Trading points right off the bat, the Dinos and the WolfPack seemed to be evenly matched. The first significant lead in the first didn't come until the Dinos began to pull away at 12-8 with an ace from Jeremy Guenther. The lead eventually built up to 16-9 at the technical.

Sean Martin made his presence felt early on with kills from the right side and middle Jovan Jankovic put up a huge block at the net that Thompson Rivers had a tough time getting around. The Dinos' big lead held up until the end of the set where they would win it 25-16. 

The beginning of the set once again proved to be a race to 16. Tied at 10 all, Calgary finally started to pull away for a 16-13 lead heading into the technical. Calvin Siebert came off the bench after the timeout to serve at the line for the Dinos and he would do well, taking Calgary to 19 with Thompson Rivers trailing by four. 

A timeout from the WolfPack obviously sparked something in them, as the visitors fought their way back from the deficit to tie it up, and then go ahead by one at 21-20 with consecutive aces from Brad Gunter. Trading points once again, Trent Monagle was subbed in to serve for the Dinos and it worked as the WolfPack had a hitting error followed by a net call to allow the Dinos to go up 2-0 with a 25-22 win. 

In the third set, Martin continually proved his worth on the young Dinos squad, adding kill after kill to keep the WolfPack at bay. It would be a tough fought last set, as Calgary held a small one point lead at the technical timeout.

After the break, the Dinos came alive, pulling away and gaining a six point lead at 22-16 thanks to a kill from Martin. He would eventually get the match point on an ace to solidify the win at 25-22. 

Three Dinos hit double digits on the night, with Martin leading the way with a team-high 15 points on 12 kills and three blocks. Guenther and Greg Mann both added another ten points for the Dinos. Setter Jackson Maris recorded 28 assists on the night.

Gunter led all players with 14 kills and a total of 18 points. Philip Orazi added another seven for the visiting WolfPack. 

Both teams now hold a 6-12 record and share ninth place in the Canada West standings. The Dinos have a tough match-up next weekend when they head to Langley, B.C. to take on the Trinity Western Spartans Feb 1-2. Thompson Rivers will head home to host the Mount Royal Cougars on Feb. 2-3. 

-UC-