KELOWNA, B.C. - The UBC Okanagan Heat women's volleyball team nearly pulled off one of the biggest upsets in U SPORTS on Saturday night as they lost a narrow five-set decision to the U SPORTS No. 1-ranked UBC Thunderbirds, with set scores of 25-20, 22-25, 19-25, 25-18, and 15-12.
Notably, the Heat handed the Thunderbirds just their third and fourth set losses of the season after UBC entered the match having won 33 of their 35 sets played so far in 2024-25.
Olivia Boulding was a standout for the Heat, leading the way with 17.5 points thanks to 15 kills with a hitting percentage of .213.
Kylan Finseth posted her second-most assists in a Heat uniform with 37 while
Amaya Perry was a defensive force, recording 19 digs to go along with 12 kills.
Natalie Funk showed efficiency in attack, delivering a career-high 15 kills with a team-high hitting percentage of .333, and accumulating 16 points.
"I'm very proud of how our Heat student-athletes bounced back tonight," commented Heat head coach
Steve Manuel after the game. "The rust of the long break with no training or competition really showed on Friday night. But they dug deep and battled tonight, we just came up a bit short in the end. The positive is that we showed we can compete toe-to-toe with the top teams in the country and we will build on that over these next few weeks."
The opening set was a close one throughout as the two teams sat tied at 13-13 tie thanks to consecutive blocks by
Olivia Tymkiw and Funk. However, the Thunderbirds gained momentum with a 5-1 run, highlighted by kills from Lucy Borowski and service aces that extended their lead to 21-19. After a timeout by UBCO, UBC sealed the set with two consecutive service aces by Akash Grewal, winning 25-20.
The second set saw a closely contested battle. The Thunderbirds started strong with a 2-0 lead, but the Heat quickly equalized at 2-2 with kills from
Natalie Funk. UBC took a timeout at 9-5 following a series of points, but the Heat's
Amaya Perry responded with three consecutive kills to narrow the gap to 9-8. In the latter half, UBCO's
Olivia Boulding and Perry contributed significantly, helping the home team pull ahead to clinch the set 25-22, with Boulding sealing the win with a service ace.
The third began with a strong start from the Thunderbirds, as Issy Robertshaw delivered two consecutive service aces to give them an early 2-0 lead. UBCO responded with key plays, including a kill by Funk, but still found themselves down 6-3. From there, the Heat mounted a significant comeback, highlighted by
Madison Gardner's service ace, leveling the score at 10-10 and prompting a timeout from UBC. UBCO took control late in the set, capitalizing on a series of errors by UBC, and ultimately secured the set with a decisive 25-19 victory.
The fourth set began with the Thunderbirds taking an early lead, scoring the first seven points with consecutive kills from Borowski and Grewal which prompted a timeout by the Heat at a score of 5-0. Funk responded for the Heat with two kills, narrowing the gap slightly to 7-2, but UBC maintained its momentum, extending their advantage to 14-5 after a service ace by Trinity Solecki. UBCO attempted a comeback, with
Amaya Perry securing three consecutive kills to bring the score to 21-15, but UBC clinched the set with a final kill by Borowski, finishing the set with a 25-18 victory.
Heading to a tie-breaking fifth set, UBCO scored the first seven points, thanks to a series of attack errors by Thunderbirds players and successful kills by Boulding and Tymkiw. UBC called timeouts at 4-0 and 7-0 in an attempt to halt the momentum. After the second timeout, UBC began to close the gap, as kills from Grewal and Emelie Silovs brought the score to 10-7. The Heat would make it 11-7 but the top-ranked Thunderbirds showed their class, scoring eight of the next nine points to claim the win.
UBCO moves to 4-8 after the five-set thriller while the Thunderbirds hold onto their undefeated record by the slimmest of margins, improving to 12-0.
The Heat will return to action next weekend as they get set to host their annual Pride Night when the Manitoba Bisons (8-4) come to town to begin a weekend doubleheader on Friday, January 17. First serve is set for 7 p.m. and tickets for the game can be purchased at the door on game day.
