The University of the Fraser Valley men's volleyball team tested the CCAA No.2-ranked Camosun Chargers on Friday evening, but fell in four sets at the Envision Financial Athletic Centre.
With key outside hitters from both sides – UFV's
Landon Uy and Camosun's Vitor Pereira – missing due to injury, it was the Chargers taking advantage, prevailing 25-22, 19-25, 25-22, 25-21. They improve to 5-1 in PACWEST play, while the Cascades fall to 3-4.
The two teams lock horns again on Saturday (3 p.m., EFAC).
"It was an opportunity for us, for sure, to take one on our home court," Cascades head coach
Nathan Bennett said, noting the impact of Pereira's absence. "These are the moments we've been trying to talk about – these opportunities, you have to take them. And this was a big opportunity that we had again tonight that we let slip.
"It's being in these moments. What we have to start to do is learn how to win – how to put teams away after 20 (points). Right now, that's a mentality thing. In the level that we're playing right now, we're skilled enough to play with these teams. It's the neck-up stuff that we're having to work on."
UFV pushed the Chargers in the opening set, taking a 14-11 lead, but the visitors leveled the score at 15 apiece. They would eventually close it out 25-22 as both teams exchanged attacking and service errors down the stretch.
The Cascades jumped out to a 12-7 advantage in the second set and continued to build it from there. While Camosun made a late push, a
Justin Peleshytyk kill closed it out for the hosts, 25-19.
Caleb Kastelein came alive for the Cascades in the third, registering eight kills and an ace to keep UFV close. However, Camosun finished it off 25-22 after a controversial carry call on Kastelein.
Both squads traded blows throughout the fourth, with Kastelein and
Shubdeep Wander making a big impact for the Cascades, and Ty Moorman and Eduardo Bida stepping up for the Chargers. Unfortunately for Camosun, with the score even at 20-20, Bida collided with teammate Kristofer LaGuardia chasing down a ball and was forced to leave the match with a hand injury. The Chargers rose above it, though, prevailing 25-21 with Graham Basi serving out the match.
Kastelein and Wander saw huge volume in Uy's absence, racking up 19 and 18 kills, respectively. Wander added three aces and 10 digs, and setter
Graham Walkey had two aces of his own to go with 46 set assists. Peleshytyk chipped in with seven kills and 10 digs.
Bida (15 kills, 14 digs) and Morgan Humphreys (11 kills) led the way for the Chargers.
