Bisons hit a wall
Alberta proves why they are No. 1
STEVE BOHRN STAFF
The Bisons men’s volleyball team finished off the first half of their 2006-07 Canada West conference regular season with a pair of defeats on Dec. 2 and Dec. 3 to the University of Alberta Golden Bears.
The Golden Bears came into the weekend matches ranked No. 1 in the country while the Bisons held down the No. 6 position in the nation.
The Golden Bears quickly proved to the sizable crowd on Saturday why they had the No. 1 ranking.
At a perfect 8-0 to start the season, the Golden Bears have certainly looked like the team to beat in the Canada West conference. Lead by Adam Kaminsky and Thomas Jarmoc, the team seems unbeatable at the moment.
The ’Zoons, as the Bisons team has nicknamed itself, had a tough run on Saturday evening losing 3- 0 (25-17, 25-13, 25-21). The game was essentially a Golden Bear clinic in the arts of serving, blocking and smashing.
On Sunday, the ’Zoons seemed like a team out to prove that the previous night was an aberration. They came out charging in the first set, and even took a lead at one point in the set, before eventually losing 25-19.
In the second set the Bisons did something that very few teams have been able to do this year, and something that seemed borderline impossible on Saturday. The Bisons actually took a set from the Golden Bears by a score of 25-23. It was a narrow margin of victory but it still gave Bisons fans something to cheer about.
The lost set seemed to only ignite a flame under the seats of the Golden Bears, however. The next two sets went handily to the visitors by scores of 25- 20 and 25-19 respectively, courtesy of some timely hitting by Jarmoc, Kaminsky, and the rest of the Golden Bears cast.
The Bisons were led by Toon van Lankvelt and Matt Balchin who had 15 and 12 kills apiece on Sunday night, while van Lankvelt also was the Bisons leader on Saturday with 11 kills.
Meanwhile, Bison setter Drew Venables continued his excellent play with 60 assists over the two-game set. That brings his season total to an impressive 209.
There were moments when the Bisons looked like the better of the two teams. But, as seems to be the case this season, the Bisons were unable to bring it all together for an entire match. Mistakes like that will need to be corrected over the winter break if the Bisons hope to contend with the likes of the Golden Bears.
The ’Zoons can take solace in the fact that they are not the first team to lose in this fashion to Alberta, and in all probability, will not be the last.
On this note, the Bisons end conference play until after the new year. The break will give the players a chance to get away from the hectic schedule of practices, classes and games.
Coach Garth Pischke has his hands full as it is always hard to encourage a team after such a huge defeat, but the fact that they do not have to go and play again next weekend will help them a great deal.
The challenge for all the Bisons teams will be finding the right balance between relaxing and staying sharp.
Next action for the Bisons is Jan. 12 when they play Trinity Western in Langley B.C., and their next home game is Jan. 26 when they host Thompson Rivers for a two-game set at the Investors Group Athletic Centre.
