WINNIPEG, Man. — The UBCO Heat men's volleyball team (1-0) edged past the Manitoba Bisons (0-1) in a five-set thriller on Friday, securing a 3-2 victory with set scores of 33-31, 21-25, 16-25, 25-23, 16-14. 

The Heat's blocking was pivotal, totaling 12.5 blocks, which helped to stave off the Bisons' 63 kills. In a rematch of last year's Canada West play-in series, which was won by the Bisons, UBCO capitalized on crucial points down the stretch, highlighted by clutch serving from rookie setter Dominic Sodaro, to clinch the match in the final set.

The first set was tied 23 times in a back-and-forth battle that went to extras. Manitoba had set point twice at 26-25 and 27-26, but the Heat stayed in the fight with a one-handed kill from Ashton South and a Manuel kill that painted the back corner.
 
On the other end, the Herd fought off four set points, but a balanced UBCO attack made the difference, as they took the first 33-31 with kills in succession from Thys Weststrate and Xander van Driel.

Manitoba bounced back with strong performances in the second and third set but the Heat commanded momentum for most of the fourth set. They jumped out to a five-point lead multiple times before the Bisons battled back to cut the deficit to just one. However, van Driel went hard off hands to make it 24-22, and an error gave the visitors the set two points later.

The final set was close throughout and the Bisons earned a set point at 14-13. However, three straight errors from the hosts, highlighted by strong serving from Sodaro, gave UBCO the victory.

Zach van Geel led the Heat with 39 assists and contributed six total blocks over five sets.  Manuel recorded 15 kills on 33 attempts, resulting in 16.5 points. South made his presence felt defensively, finishing with eight block assists in five sets. Making his first start for the Heat, transfer van Driel played a big role with 13 kills, five digs and a team-best two aces.

Alex Witt paced the offence for the Bisons with 51 assists and added two service aces over five sets. Karil Dadash Adeh led the team in points, amassing 17.5 while also securing 16 kills, maintaining a .312 hitting percentage.

The two teams will wrap up their weekend series on Saturday, October 18. The action is set to begin at 4 p.m. as UBCO aims to open their season with a sweep.

Game Notes:
- The victory marked the first-ever for the Heat on the road against the Bisons.