Image credit: Andrew Snucins via TRU WolfPack

By Aaron Schulze

WolfPack Volleyball

WolfPack volleyball teams keep playoff hopes alive with five-set wins over Mount Royal University

Feb 17, 2024 | 9:48 AM

KAMLOOPS — Both men’s and women’s Thompson Rivers University (TRU) WolfPack volleyball teams kept their Canada West playoff hopes alive with five set wins over the Mount Royal University Cougars Friday (Feb. 16).

The WolfPack women’s team got things started by coming back down from a 2-1 deficit to take down the Cougars 3-2 (25-23, 22-25, 25-27, 25-14, 15-7). Ema Palkovicova led the way with 20 kills on 36 swings.

“The first half of the match both teams were hitting at a really high rate and getting sideouts a little too easily so I knew at some point the well would dry up and that we needed to dial in our defence to slow them down a little bit,” Chad Grimm, WolfPack women’s volleyball head coach says. “In the third set we had some chances to finish it off and we kind of let those go but I was happy with the way we responded to that. I think earlier in the season if we let one get away, we would come out a little flat but we didn’t do that – we came out firing in the fourth and the fifth so it was good to see them turn that around.”

Shortly after, the WolfPack men’s team nearly let things get away. While the men led 2-0 after two sets, their game with the Cougars went to a fifth and deciding set. However, the men hung on for the 3-2 (25-23, 25-16, 18-25, 9-25, 15-11) win.

“That’s how we wrote it up – start hot and finish hot,” Pat Hennelly, WolfPack men’s volleyball head coach says jokingly. “That game was a snapshot of how this season has gone, we hit the wall, but I have to give credit to the guys, they came back from the worst set loss of the year and really turned the jets on. We said from the minute we started practice this week that if we’re not serving tough, we’re not in this game so we really had to strap it on to give us a chance.”

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Matthew Hamilton led the way with 17 kills on 31 attempts.

Friday’s win had extra sentimentality for the WolfPack. It was the first game at the Tournament Capital Centre (TCC) Riley Brinnen attended since he was injured in the McGill Road car crash that killed his teammate Owyn McInnis and seriously injured teammate Owen Waterhouse.

“It felt like he was right where he belonged and right from the first set and in warmup, I could see that we were engaged and on,” Hennelly says.

The women’s WolfPack improve their record to 9-14 on the 2023-24 Canada West season. They’re in a three-way tie for the eighth and final playoff spot with the University of Winnipeg and University of Calgary, but Winnipeg carries the tie breaker.

Meanwhile, the men improve their record to 11-12 and sit in ninth, one game behind the University of Manitoba for the eighth and final playoff spot.

The TRU volleyball teams wrap up their regular seasons and try to book their tickets to the playoffs when they host the Cougars again Saturday (Feb. 17) at the TCC.

The women play at 3:00 p.m. while the men play at 4:45 p.m.