Griffins play more connected and had solid moments, but uber-efficient Bisons still get 3-0 win
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
|
|
18 | 15 | 21 | 0 |
Team Stats
Manitoba
| Game Statistics | Manitoba | MacEwan University |
|---|---|---|
| Hitting % | .438 | .144 |
| Blocks | 8.0 | 1.0 |
| Digs | 39 | 28 |
| Aces | 4 | 6 |
Jefferson Hagen
MacEwan Athletics
EDMONTON – You have to go back more than two years to find an opponent that was more efficient against the MacEwan Griffins women's volleyball team than the Manitoba Bisons were on Saturday afternoon.
Pass. Set. Attack.
They didn't need a lot of second chances, attacking at a blistering .438 pace, meaning even though the Griffins threw some solid stuff at them, it didn't even make a dent. The defending U SPORTS champions left the David Atkinson Gym with another 3-0 victory (25-18, 25-15, 25-21).
In fact, the Griffins haven't faced that clean of an attack since Nov. 3, 2023, when their straight-sets loss to UFV came on the backs of a .452 put forth by the Cascades, then one of the best teams in the country.
"Their level of play is quite good," said Griffins head coach Chris Wandler of a Manitoba attack that's fronted by two-time U SPORTS player of the year Raya Surinx, who is also on Team Canada. "They really take care of the ball and are very skilled at taking care of the ball. They put the ball in good spots for their setter to make a good set, so their attackers, who are top notch, can put it away. They're a very good team."
Surinx paced the Bisons with 21 kills in just three sets, hitting at .500, while adding two aces, a block and five digs to account for 23.5 points. Ella Gray chipped in 10 kills and Julia Martens had 39 assists.
MacEwan was led by Alyshia Bryks, who had another strong night with 12 kills on the right side, adding two aces and accounting for 15.0 points. For the weekend, Bryks averaged 4.67 kills/set against a nationally-ranked team.
"She's definitely a workhorse and definitely deserves a lot more accolades," said Wandler. "She's very unassuming, but when she gets on the court, she's a force."
The @MacEwanGriffins are rolling in Set 3 with an early lead as Alyshia Bryks put them up by two midway through on a big swing from the right side!#GriffNation pic.twitter.com/9UJ32gPoaD
— GriffinsWVB (@GriffinsWVB) January 24, 2026
Griffins setter Payton Shimoda had 25 assists, an ace and seven digs, lapping over 500 assists in a season for the fourth time in her career. She's also up to 2,647 career assists, which is only two shy of the top 20 in Canada West history.
"Payton just does Payton things," said Wandler of her performance on Saturday. "The things that she does to enable her team to be in good situations and to be in matches, it's really unbelievable.
"We're all proud of her. She works her tail off 24/7 – on the court, academics, team-wise. She has her fingerprints all over this team."
Really nice quick strike in the middle here as @MacEwanGriffins stay alive on @umbisons's first set point opportunity when Kaitlin Rolph's solid pass allows Payton Shimoda to feed Anika Buys for a hammer!#GriffNation pic.twitter.com/1JjGcUUnnw
— GriffinsWVB (@GriffinsWVB) January 24, 2026
The Griffins also had solid contributions from Alana Murr, who had six kills, and rookie Chloe Penz, who came off the bench in the first and second sets before starting in the third as they searched for someone who could help diversify their attack.
"We needed some production out of that other power hitting spot," said Wandler. "If you just go back to the same things we keep on doing, it's just not working. We had to change something up and in this case it was a first year coming in and she really made a difference. She really brings life to the group, and she just has a really big motor."
That energy was something they were lacking in Friday's 3-0 loss and, at times, the Griffins looked better in that department Saturday. They just ran into a buzzsaw, though, as the Bisons were determined to stick with the top teams in Canada West, doing just that by improving to 12-4, solidly in fourth in the conference.
Alana Murr chips it off the side of the block and out to keep get the @MacEwanGriffins to 5-9 in Set 2.#GriffNation pic.twitter.com/YbyYg1zsvl
— GriffinsWVB (@GriffinsWVB) January 24, 2026
MacEwan is now 5-11 and remain in 11th, tied in record with both UBC Okanagan and Winnipeg – who occupy the final two playoff spots – but are behind both of them on the points tiebreaker by one.
Four games remain in the regular season for the Griffins – two against Brandon (3-13) Jan. 30-31 and two against Alberta (14-2) Feb. 13-14.
Winnipeg will play Manitoba next weekend and finish with Brandon Feb. 13-14, while UBCO faces Mount Royal (2-12) Jan. 30-31 and UBC (13-3) Feb. 13-14.
It's going to be a dogfight.
"We need to be a bunch of dogs," said Wandler. "We need to scrap. We're never out of a rally, we're never out of a set, even though we might be down three or four points. We've got to make sure we keep our minds clear in that regard – just play focused and together. That's what it's about. We were a little bit more connected today, I thought."
