The University of the Fraser Valley men's volleyball team saw its upset bid come unraveled in the second set on Friday evening, as they fell to the Douglas Royals at the Envision Financial Athletic Centre.
 
After the CCAA No. 7-ranked Royals took the first set by a 25-18 count, the Cascades came back strong in the second and built a 21-17 advantage. Douglas, though, reeled off five straight points to seize the lead, and went on to take it 25-23. Royals setter Jared Collin orchestrated the 5-0 surge, serving for four points including an ace, and handing out three set assists during the run. With the momentum squarely on their side, the visitors wrapped up the match in the third set, 25-20.
 
Douglas remains undefeated at 5-0, while the Cascades fall to 0-7. The two teams conclude the home-and-home set on Saturday afternoon in New Westminster (3 p.m. start, pacwestbc.tv).
 
"The simplest way to put it is, we struggled to find our stride," UFV bench boss Kyle Donen analyzed afterward. "We had too many missed opportunities in our passing game. They served the ball tough at times, and they had a lot of success with it. We weren't able to give ourselves a chance to keep it on our side.
 
"In the second set, we were very good up until 21 points, but we just threw it away. We had a chance to even the match, and we let it slip."
 
Ben Friesen and Matt Whittall led the Cascades' attack with seven kills apiece, and Whittall added two aces. Ian Jagersma chipped in with five kills for the hosts.
 
Ben Shand sparked the Royals with 10 kills.