Jason Hills
For MacEwan Athletics
EDMONTON — Facing the Trinity Western Spartans is a very tall task.
They're the defending U Sports national champions and current No.1 team in the country, but the MacEwan Griffins showed in stretches they can compete with the Spartans, despite their three set loss (25-14, 25-23, 25-16) Friday night at the David Atkinson gymnasium.
Mariah Bereziuk led the Griffins with eight kills, while Andi Krawec chipped in with four kills and nine digs.
Maryn Boldon led the Spartans with 11 kills, four aces and five digs as Trinity Western improved to a perfect 11-0, while MacEwan fell to 2-9.
The Spartans really controlled the service line, recording 11 service aces in the win, compared to just three for the Griffins.
"Anytime we were in system, we were right there with them. It comes down to us cleaning up our passing and being able to run our offence more effectively,' said Griffins middle Sarah McGee.
"They're a really good serving team, and I think we were just a little bit tight (in serve-receive), and that's definitely an area I know we can be much better in."
The Griffins were dealt a big blow with second-year setter Payton Shimoda was forced to leave the first set due to injury and she didn't return.
It forced first-year setter Renee Jodoin into action, and for Jodoin, who only saw action in one set previously this season, she stepped up big time.
Jodoin recorded 13 assists, and earned her first-career service ace as as well as two blocks.
"I think she did a really good job, I was proud of her," said Griffins interim head coach Dusty Freimark.
"She had a real presence out there and she put up a few blocks for us, and dumped. For a first-year setter against the No.1 team in the country, that shows a lot of courage."
W��| FINAL
— MacEwan Griffins (@MacEwanGriffins) December 3, 2022
Renee Jodoin's serve gets the better of the @TWUSpartans in Set 3, but the visitors get the win, ending the match 3-0 in their favour (25-14, 25-23, 25-16). Recap coming soon.#GriffNation pic.twitter.com/BgzJ5CjWm5
Jodin admitted there were definitely a few nerves in that opening set when she came off the bench to replace Shimoda, but once she settled in, she proved she belonged on the court.
"When I saw Payton go down, I knew I had to step up and have a job to do," said Jodoin.
"That first set was a little nerve-racking, but in that second set, I just wanted to keep things simple and trust my hitters.
"I'm quite proud of myself. To get thrown in like that, I thought my serves were consistent and using that dump against them, I think that surprised them (Trinity Western). It was nice to go in and show what I'm capable of doing."
The Griffins showed some flashes in their opening set loss, but really put up a strong fight against the Spartans in the second set.
After falling behind 8-3 early, the Griffins went on a nice run, tying the game at 11-11 after back-to-back blocks from McGee.
Mariah Bereziuk led the Griffins with eight kills on Friday (Eduardo Perez photo).
More strong blocking from Bereziuk, Jodoin and Emma Brooks gave the Griffins a 14-12 lead midway through the second set.
"We did a good job of establishing ourselves, our blocking was a big part of our game. It was nice to see us shut them down at times with our block, and that's something we can build on tomorrow," said McGee.
"They're a good team, but we showed, especially in the second set, that we can be right there with them."
The Griffins would take a 21-19 lead late in the second set, but they just couldn't put the Spartans away.
An ace from Dora Komlodi would tie the set at 21-21, and despite some strong play late from Bereziuk, the Griffins couldn't get that set win.
MacEwan battled hard once again in the third set, but after cutting the Spartans lead to 15-13, Trinity Western went on a 10-3 run to close out the match and the straight sets win.
"It really changes momentum for sure when you're that close. A few of our athletes showed more in that second set. Andi (Krawec) was strong, so was Arden (Butler) and Sarah (McGee) was really consistent for us," said Freimark.
"But going into that third set, it just changed for us. It was like we were back at the bottom of that mountain again."
MacEwan will close out their weekend series against the Spartans on Saturday at 5:30 p.m. at the David Atkinson gymnasium (Canada West TV).
