SPARTANS BATTLE HUSKIES IN MUST WIN WEEKEND
MEN’S VOLLEYBALL (CANADA WEST)
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2010
TWU SPARTANS VS THE UNIVERSITY OF SASKATCHEWAN HUSKIES
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SPARTANS BATTLE HUSKIES IN MUST WIN WEEKEND
LANGLEY, British Columbia –The No. 8 Trinity Western University Spartans play host to the University of Saskatchewan Huskies this Friday night at 8 p.m.. This is the first of two matches to be played at the Langley Events Centre this weekend the two teams will follow it up with a second game on Saturday night at 7 p.m. The Spartans are on a mission to host the first round of the play-offs. However, the competition is tight in Canada West, so they must first focus on securing a play-off spot. The Canada West standings have the Spartans sitting in fourth at 8-6. The Huskies, who are 6-8, are on the outside looking in, as they are eighth, with the top seven teams moving on to post season play. The Huskies can tie the Spartans in the standings with a pair of wins this weekend, but the Spartans can also clinch a spot if they sweep.
TWU had no scheduled games last weekend. Their previous matches were on January 22 and 23 against the University of Winnipeg Wesmen. They lost both nights to the Wesmen; each night in five sets. After such close losses, they will look to rebound against the Huskies, who split their matches last weekend against the Thompson Rivers University Wolfpack. The Huskies defeated the Wolfpack 3-2 on the first night, but fell 3-1 on Saturday.
SPARTANS
The Spartans have shown their strength on both sides of the ball; offensively and defensively. Currently they lead Canada West in kills with 12.86 kills per game and in digs with 11.42. They also rank fifth in blocks with 2.25 blocks per game, fourth in assists with 11.75 assists per game, and third in hitting percentage at .258 hits per game.
Leading the attack for the Spartans are second year left side Steven Marshall who is fifth in Canada West with 3.50 kills per game, sixth in points with 4.11 per game and seventh in serving aces with 0.29 per game. Also providing offensive fire power is third year left side Marc Howatson who averages 2.56 kills per game and 1.93 digs per game. The Spartans defence starts with the blocking of fourth year middle Josh Doornenbal, who is fourth in Canada West with 1.09 blocks per game, while second year libero Jarrod Offereins sits fifth in digs with 2.46 per game. Third year setter Ben Ball operates the Spartans attack and currently sits in fourth spot in Canada West with 10.25 set assists per game.
SASKATCHEWAN
The Huskies biggest threat is their ability to serve. They are third in Canada West in serving aces with an average of 1.06 per game. They are seventh in hitting percentage at .233 per game, eighth in assists with 10.81 per game, and eighth in kills at 11.57 per game. Defensively, they are eighth with opponent hitting percentage at an average of .242 per game, seventh in blocks at an average of 1.80 blocks per game, and tenth in digs at an average of 7.63 digs per game.
The “go-to” player for the Huskies is Geoffrey Zerr, who is second in Canada West in hitting percentage with an average of .464. He also is third on his team in kills averaging 1.94 kills per game and tied for third on his team with serving aces as he has 7 on the season. Matt Busse is the team leader in the serving categorey, and sixth in Canada West in serving aces by averaging 0.30 per game. Another offensive threat is Alwyn Piche who leads the team in kills per game percentage at 2.74. His defensive ability is very high as well, having the greatest dig per game percentage amongst non-libero players on his team at 1.31 digs per game. Running the offense is Cole Hintz, who sits fifth in Canada West with an assist percentage of 9.50 per game.
All matches will be played at the Langley Events Centre as well as being broadcast live on Spartan TV. Live stats will also be available.
-TW-
Last Updated: 2010-02-03
Author: Scott Stewart
Email: ssstew@twu.ca
