EDMONTON - The Golden Bears did enough to dispatch the MacEwan Griffins 3-1 (25-19, 28-26, 25-12, 25-19) in a rival rubber match Saturday night at the Saville Centre.
It was the regular season finale, and an upstart Griffins team impressed against the Bears, who at times looked flat on the attack, and more error-prone than their season average. Matt Shand had a game-high 15 kills in his regular season swan song for the Bears, who hit .368 on the day, while the Griffins were paced by Fabian Breitenbach who had 11.
With the victory, the Bears end their regular season at 15-5, and pending a UBCO Heat loss against the UBC Thunderbirds, seem poised to take the third spot in the conference. This would then set up a matchup at home in two weeks against the 11-9 Winnipeg Wesmen. The Griffins end their season at 0-20, but finish the season on a high note after playing well in tonight's game.
Owen Harris and Matt Shand came out swinging for the Bears, as they each recorded two kills en route to an early 13-7 lead in the opener. However, the Griffins would put up a fierce resistance as Fabian Breitenbach would record four kills in a set where they came within three of the Bears lead. However, Alberta would hold on for a 25-19 set win.
The second set started with the Bears recording four straight service errors as the Griffins took and held the lead all the way to an 11-11 scoreline. However the Griffins, behind a massive Seth Birkholtz block, would take a 21-19 lead late in the set to force a Bears timeout. The Bears would clutch a 24-24 tie, and the teams would be in lockstep in extras. After Jacob Sargent and Brendan Lord traded kills, two straight MacEwan blocks would end a remarkable set win for the Griffins. The frame itself was tied an astounding 18 different times.
The third frame was a return to form for the Bears, who hit .448 in the frame and were able to hold the Griffins to a .048 mark on 21 attacks. Dylan Martens paced the Bears attack with four kills in the frame, while they also added four service aces as a team. It set up an exciting fourth frame, where the Griffins would falter early but keep the game within reach the whole way, eventually losing 25-19.
