CapU Blues sports info

The Capilano Blues are playoff bound despite a tough five-set loss to the top-ranked College of the Rockies (COTR) Friday night (set scores: 27-25, 25-23, 23-25, 21-25, 15-11) at the Centre for Sport and Wellness (CSW).

The loss drops the Blues’ record to 9-10 on the season but results out of Douglas College favoured Capilano as the Royals defeated visiting Camosun College in five sets. Camosun’s defeat at Douglas Friday means they can’t exceed nine wins on the season and the Blues have the head-to-head tiebreaker over Camosun this season owing to more sets won in head-to-head play.

Friday at Capilano, the Blues showed character in pushing the CCAA’s No. 1 team to five sets after falling behind two sets to none. Up 17-15 in the opening set, the Blues stumbled with a service error and some lax judgment on COTR serves thought to be out but that ultimately landed inside the rectangle. The set would go to extra points but the combined 10 kills in the opening frame from Dylan Annala and Luke Margenau helped to close it out.

Luke Tiegen registered four of his 15 kills on the night in the second set while Reese Nowotny had three out of the middle but it wasn’t enough to overcome 10 kills between Margenau and Diego Policarpo as the visitors went up 2-0.

Capilano wouldn’t go away quietly and earned a win in the third set, aided by a pair of aces from Quentin Middleton and some big blocks by Nowotny. The home side kept it going in the fourth with Kyle Hinchey getting in on the offence on his way to 11 kills, setting the stage for a deciding fifth set but COTR recovered, got an early lead in the final frame and hung on for the win.

The teams have a Saturday game, the final contest of the regular season, which will start at 6 p.m. at the CSW.