VANCOUVER — The U SPORTS No. 4-ranked UBCO Heat (15-5) closed out their regular season with a four-set loss to the No. 1-ranked UBC Thunderbirds (19-1), with scores of 16-25, 19-25, 25-21, 22-25 at War Memorial Gym on Saturday evening. 

Despite the Heat's 40 kills and seven service aces, the Thunderbirds' 56 kills and .371 hitting percentage proved too much to overcome.

Dominic Sodaro got the start at setter for the Heat and was a key playmaker with 32 assists, driving the offence forward. Seba Manuel made his mark with 12 kills and four aces, tallying 17 points overall. Ashton South contributed five kills on 11 attempts, boasting a .455 hitting percentage, while Xander van Driel matched Manuel with 12 kills and added a solo block.

Reeve Gingera shone for the Thunderbirds, leading with 19.5 points from 15 kills and four service aces over the four sets. Alex Borowski had an impressive .600 hitting percentage, spearheading the offence with 20 kills to earn 22 points. 

The Thunderbirds took command in the first set, leveraging aggressive blocking and efficient setting to secure a 25-16 win over UBCO. Mason Greves was instrumental, setting up multiple kills that fuelled the scoring for Dawson Pratt and Borowski. Though Manuel's service aces momentarily pressured UBC, UBCO struggled with attack errors, allowing UBC to maintain their lead.

UBC maintained their momentum in the second set, starting strong with a 5-0 run, seizing on two early attack errors by UBCO. Greves' playmaking led to critical assists for several key kills, including two by Borowski, widening UBC's lead. Despite UBCO's attempts to narrow the gap, including a service ace by Manuel and blocks from Thys Weststrate and van Driel, service errors disrupted their rhythm. The set ended with UBC ahead at 25-19.

UBCO rallied in the third set, capitalizing on Thunderbird errors to clinch a 25-21 win, handing UBC just their 12th set loss of the season. Ashton South and van Driel were pivotal, delivering multiple kills, while Sodaro provided crucial assists. Both teams struggled with service errors, but UBCO's key blocks, including one by Lucas Woelders, kept them ahead.

The Thunderbirds edged out a 25-22 victory in the fourth set, bolstered by a series of service aces and decisive kills. Daniel Lewis played a major role with multiple assists, setting up a critical kill by Marcus Morgan to close out the match.

Despite the loss, the Heat finish the regular season with their best record in program history, securing the fourth seed heading into the playoffs. UBCO will now prepare to host the fifth-seeded Manitoba Bisons (14-6) in the quarter-finals in two weeks. The best-of-three series gets underway with Game 1 on Friday, February 27 at 6:30 p.m.

Stay tuned to GoHeat.ca for information on when tickets will be available.