No. 1 ranked Trinity Western won their seventh Canada West Championship on March 19, defeating the No. 3 ranked Alberta Golden Bears 3-1 in front of their home fans at the Langley Events Centre.
The Spartans were able to dominate on the offensive side of the ball, completing 55 kills as a team, but the Golden Bears, who made 43 kills on the night, continually kept themselves in the game through some outstanding serving pressure. The was also decided by slim margins within each set as TWU scored only nine more points when stacked up beside the Golden Bears. It was a 6-0 run which carried the Spartans to a victory in the second set, also standing as the most important stretch in securing the victory for TWU.
Individually, both Brodie Hofer (Langley, B.C.) and Mathias Elser (Calgary) stood out for the Spartans, earning the game-highs of 18, and 14 kills respectively. Elser's night was impressive on various levels as the second-year hit .600 on his 20 attempts, adding seven assists, two assists, five digs, and four blocks to boast an incredible stat line.
Three Golden Bears made their way past 10 kills on the night. Jordan Canham led Alberta with 11 while Billy Johnstone and Grayden Wiebe found themselves at 10 each. Johnstone and Wiebe were incredible throughout the match, hitting a combined .517 to keep the Golden Bears afloat.
With Canada West play wrapped up for the 2021-22 season, both the Spartans and Golden Bears will be heading to Winnipeg to take on the U SPORTS Championships next weekend.
Read the full story on the Trinity Western Spartans website.
About Trinity Western University
Founded in 1962, Trinity Western University is Canada’s premier global Christian liberal arts University. We are dedicated to equipping students to discover meaningful connections between career, life, and the needs of the world. Drawing upon the riches of the Christian tradition, seeking to unite faith and reason through teaching and scholarship, Trinity Western University is a degree-granting research institution offering liberal arts and sciences, as well as professional schools in business, nursing, education, human kinetics, graduate studies, and arts, media, and culture. It has four campuses and locations: Langley, Richmond-Lansdowne, Richmond-Minoru, and Ottawa. Learn more at www.twu.ca or follow us on Twitter @TrinityWestern, on Facebook and LinkedIn.