CALGARY - An injury-ravaged University of Calgary Dinos women's volleyball team suffered a 3-2 home loss (27-29, 27-25, 21-25, 25-20, 15-12) to the University of Manitoba Bisons on Saturday night at the Jack Simpson gymnasium.
 
The upset loss ends the Dinos' season, as the team needed a win over the struggling Bisons to qualify for the Canada West playoffs.
 
"I just think we played to not lose, rather than playing to win," said Dinos head coach Natalie Gurnsey. "That's the difference in our confidence. When you play to not lose, it gets you into trouble."
 
The win marks just the third victory of the season for the Bisons, who despite their position near the bottom of the conference table put up some spirited performances against the Dinos this weekend.
 
The loss gives the Dinos a 10-14 record on the season, keeping them eighth in Canada West. The Bisons improve to 3-21, but remain in twelfth.
 
With a handful of injuries, the Dinos were forced to make many changes to their lineup on Saturday. Jaylynn Moffatt was out, while Amber Adolf and Rachel Solecki both subbed off early in the game. The three were replaced by Brianna Solberg, Emma Kastelein and Taeya Page.
 
"We had to find a combination of people who could work together and who would do their jobs," said Gurnsey. "I think they did the best job they could do."
 
The Dinos got off to a slow start, hitting at just 15 percent and failing to record any team blocks in the first set. The Bisons' Haille Bujan managed a set-high six kills for the Manitobans, leading her team to a narrow 29-27 win. 
 
Despite going down early on in the second set, the home side quickly managed to find their rhythm. A five-point serving run from setter Erika Myhre tied the score at 12. From there, some ferocious hitting from Laura McManes on the outside and Beth Vinnell in the middle helped the Dinos take the set 27-25.
 
"Laura McManes was exceptional. Beth Vinnell was steady again and I think our setter played really well," said Gurnsey.
 
McManes continued to perform well in the third set, scoring two consecutive service aces that tied the score at 8 apiece.
 
But the Bisons' hitters were finding holes in the home team's defense, reducing the Dinos to just one team block in the third set. With some pinpoint hitting from Allison Alcock and Tori Studler, the Bisons regained their lead in the match with a 25-21 win.
 
The makeshift Dinos squad was at their best of the match in the fourth set, with Page, Solberg and McManes all winning several points. Libero Ali Woolley held the defensive reins, earning her 30^th dig of the match, as the Dinos went on to win the set 25-20.
 
As usual, the fifth set was all about the sprint to 15 points. The Bisons took an early lead and refused to let the Dinos back into it. Down 13-9, the Dinos were clinging onto the match – and their playoff hopes – by a thread. After some long, nail-biting rallies, the Bisons eventually won the set 15-12.
 
Despite the loss, the Dinos led most of the stats in Saturday's fixture. McManes ended the game with 24 kills, while Woolley finished with 35 digs. Studler was the Bisons' star player, managing 22 kills and 21 digs. The Bisons dominated at the net however, getting 14 team blocks compared to the Dinos' five.
 
Gurnsey spoke after the match about what has been a challenging year for her team, which has been plagued by injuries throughout the season.
 
"We're still a pretty young group, so it's difficult when we haven't matured enough to weather the storms," she said. "I think we did as good a job as we could. But it was a tough year to really get momentum going."