The University of the Fraser Valley men's volleyball team pushed the Vancouver Island University Mariners to the limit on Friday night in Nanaimo, only to fall in five sets.

The teams alternated set victories throughout the match, with the Mariners eventually prevailing by scores of 25-21, 21-25, 25-21, 30-32, 15-6.

VIU (12-7) and UFV (1-16) wrap up the weekend set on Saturday afternoon.

"We felt very good about our game throughout most of that match," UFV head coach Kyle Donen noted. "The energy and battle that we had tonight was what we've been searching for.

"Our overall energy and compete as a group was great. Every guy that came in to do something for us played incredibly well. Provided something extra, or something different that just sparked us a little bit."

The Mariners took a modest 8-5 lead early, and they would not give it up, carrying it through to a 25-21 first-set victory. 

The Cascades fought back in the second, getting out to a 15-8 lead, and despite a late charge from VIU the visitors held on to win it 25-21.

With the third set even at 20, the Mariners scored five of the last six points to take it.

The fourth set was a marathon, with the Cascades eventually prevailing in epic fashion, 32-30. The hosts built a 23-20 lead late, but a service run from Josh Fefchak sparked life into the UFV squad as they went up 24-23. The teams traded blows until UFV was able to gain the advantage and close it out on the back of some timely attacking play from Landon Uy. 

The hosts controlled the fifth set, building an 8-2 lead thanks to a five-serve run by Braydon Brouwer, and closed it out 15-6.

Jackson Obst led UFV with 12 kills, followed by Graeme Hughes with 11 and Justin Peleshytyk with nine. Uy also had a strong performance with seven kills of his own, while Carter Bronson had a team-high 13 digs. Ben Friesen and Adam Frederickson shared the setting duties, posting 28 and nine set assists, respectively.

The Mariners' Brouwer led his team with 17 kills, while Adam Kapteyn had 12. 

Donen noted that despite the loss, it felt like a positive step for his team. 

"It felt like a win to get that fourth set and force a fifth the way we did," he said. "We just kept grinding and kept battling, and we stole it.

"I feel proud of what we did tonight and I hope we can continue that feeling tomorrow and channel it into a full match win."

- by Jordie Arthur, Cascades communications assistant