EDMONTON - Mackenzie Pool had a season-high 14 kills to help the Alberta Pandas win a 3-2 (25-15, 23-25, 22-25, 25-21, 15-12) comeback thriller against the UFV Cascades Saturday night at the Saville Centre.
It was a phenomenal conclusion to an incredible weekend series from the two teams, who tied 6-6 in terms of sets won in the two tight matches. Alberta jumps to 5-1 and sits in second place in the Canada West, while UFV is a strong 3-3 in the campaign to boot.
Abby Guezen paced all players with 15 kills, while Mandi Feist led the Cascades with 14 kills. The Alberta attack was strong but inconsistent on the night, finishing with an overall attacking percentage of .271, while the Cascades struggled to unleash their offence as shown by their .179 mark.
The Pandas exorcised some of last night's demons early in the opener, jumping out to a 9-4 lead and forcing a UFV timeout. Alberta, behind an incredible set from setter Sophia Magus, would not let up the rest of the way, winning the frame 25-15. Magus led the set in both kills and assists, utilizing supreme court vision for sets and attacks.
After a strong 6-1 run to start the second set, the Cascades faded mid set to let the hosts tie the game back up at 14-14. It was an incredibly tight set, with the score inching to 21-21 before an exciting 4-2 run would put a bow on a UFV win. Mandi Feist was the star for the visitors, finishing with a set-high five kills including the emphatic winner.
To expect anything less than a tight set in the third would be wack, and tight set it was as the two sides did battle all the way to the end of a 25-22 UFV win. Interestingly, the Alberta attack was much more effective that the Cascade one, outhitting the visitors .323-to-.189, but six service errors were enough to sink a promising set for the hosts.
The Pandas would rectify their larger errors and strengthen their defence, especially on the block line, as they took the fourth 25-21 and led for the entire frame. A strong showing from Abby Guezen and Mackenzie Pool were large reasons for the comeback set win, as they recorded a set-high four kills apiece, while Alberta also added a couple of blocks to hold the dangerous Cascade offence at bay.
UFV got off to a great start in the final frame, led by Lauren Attieh who had an ace and a kill, as they held a 8-5 advantage at the halfway mark. Alberta would scrape and claw its way back into the set, eventually knotting the score at 11 and forcing successive Cascade timeouts. The Saville Centre was then treated to the best run of the night. Allie Moore came up with two massive back-to-back blocks to put the Pandas on matchpoint, which was promptly finished by Pool as the Pandas eked out a tight 15-12, 3-2 victory.
The Pandas head on their bye week before a home faceoff against the MRU Cougars, while UFV returns home to take on the UBCO Heat.
