By Nick Betzing

November 9th, 2012
Augustana Vikings (2-2) at Briercrest Clippers (3-1)

On a chilly night in Caronport, a heated match-up was played in the Briercrest gym, as the hometown Clippers downed the University of Alberta, Augustana Vikings 3-1 (25-15, 18-25, 25-15, 25-18).

A tough fought first set saw the Vikings and Clippers going back and forth early in the contest as Briercrest took the early edge with a service ace and kill from Right Side Kyle Pankratz.  Augustana Right Side Nathan Lehman led his team back to within two points midway through the set as the Vikings trailed 12-10. Much battling at the net between Briercrest setter Carter Reimer and the Vikings front row saw Briercrest take a more demanding lead, as both Cody Quiring and hard-hitting Steve Guenther contributed with thunderous kills. Quiring finished the set with a pair of service aces to lead Briercrest to take it 25-15.

The second set saw the Augustana offense go on the attack as they quickly took the lead with kills from Nazheef Gangji and Kent Sanregret, combined with a few missed serves from Briercrest. Briercrest coach Nigel Mullen called a timeout as the score read 19-9. Although the timeout saw Briercrest go on a 9-6 run down the stretch, the Vikings come out on top to take the second set 25-18.

Briercrest bounced back to take the third with authority as they prevailed 25-15. The front row blocking was in full effect, while Pankratz continued his strong play with four kills in the set, while Josh Wendel made his mark with two kills of his own, along with two service aces.

With one of the most exciting sets we’ve seen this year, Briercrest and Augustana were neck and neck exchanging points as the score stood at an even 12-12 midway through the fourth set. With an Andrew Kaliel kill, Augustana took a three point lead to silence the Briercrest crowd and cause Coach Mullen to call another crucial timeout. This once again proved to ignite his team, as Quiring responded with two emphatic kills and a block to tie the game once again. A flustered Vikings team couldn’t attain the same result after two timeouts of their own and the crowd was back in the game. Kills from the 6’7” powerhouse Pankratz and Steve Guenther closed the game, as Briercrest had nine unanswered points to win the game 25-19.

Players of the Game:
Briercrest: Kyle Pankratz (2 blocks, 2 aces, 7 digs, 19 kills)
Augustana: Kent Sanregret (11 digs, 8 kills)

Game notes: Briercrest was led by Kyle Pankratz with 19 kills, Josh Wendel with 4 service aces, Pablo Acuna with 11 digs, and Brad Harms with 4 stuff blocks. Briercrest owned the battle at the net with 50 kills and 10 blocks to Augustana’s 34 kills and 5 blocks. Briercrest also led the way with 10 service aces to Augustana’s 3.