CALGARY – The University of Calgary Dinos men's volleyball team remained perfect on the season as they defeated the MacEwan University Griffins 3-1 (27-25, 25-21, 22-25, 25-12) on Saturday night at the Jack Simpson Gym.

The win marks the fourth straight by the Dinos to start the 2021-2022 season, keeping them atop the Canada West's Central Division alongside the Alberta Golden Bears, while the Griffins are still searching for their first win. 

Saturday's matchup was much closer than Friday night with neither side establishing a dominant attack early on. Ethan Nashim and Alexei Walliser led the charge for the Griffins, each finishing with 15 kills on the night. The Dinos pulled away late thanks to the clutch play of Louis Kuntsmann, who totalled three blocks and a kill down the stretch, contributing to four of the Dinos' final five points in a 27-25 first set win.

The second set resembled the first in many ways as both teams looked evenly matched early on. However, the Dinos seemed to push all the right buttons as they continuously won points coming out of timeouts. Although MacEwan improved their hitting percentage from the night earlier, untimely service errors continued to kill their momentum. The Dinos attack once again surged late in the set as Kunstmann and Lincoln Baines powered home timely kills, allowing the Dinos to capture the second set 25-21.

The Griffins would go on to win the third set 25-22, but the comeback was short-lived as the Dinos dominated the fourth and final set, 25-12.

Kuntsmann was a key contributor for Calgary after missing Friday's game.

"I really enjoy being here, I'm having a great time...I just want to play as well as I can and have fun with the boys," said the first-year middle from Bad Soden, Germany. "I feel like everyone's been playing well and that's what's been keeping us going so far." 

The Dinos enter a bye week and return to action on Friday, Nov. 26 on the road against the Alberta Golden Bears. The Griffins will get a chance to regroup during their bye week and will look to earn their first win against the Mount Royal Cougars when they host them on Friday, Nov. 26.