Henry Rempel hammered a game-high 14 kills and added six digs to lead the Trinity Western Spartans to a 3-0 (25-23, 25-18, 25-19) win and a 2-1 series victory over the Winnipeg Wesmen in Canada West men’s volleyball semifinal action in Langley, B.C., Saturday night.
Trinity Western, the defending national champion, earned its 12th consecutive trip to the conference final while the Wesmen remain very much alive in their pursuit of a berth in the national championship.
Kaden Schmidt added 10 kills for the winners.
Meanwhile, Jaxon Rose and Isaiah Olfert pounded out 10 kills apiece for the visitors while Nigel Nielsen added seven more kills.
Rose also chipped in with a team-high seven digs.
Unranked Winnipeg will travel to Edmonton next weekend for a one-game third-place game against the UBC Thunderbirds. The winner will advance to the U Sports championship, slated for March 14-17 in Kingston, Ont.
Meanwhile, the seventh-ranked Spartans will face the No. 2 Alberta Golden Bears for the conference title. Both teams have already clinched a spot in Kingston.
On Friday, Winnipeg forced a deciding game in the best-of-three series by sweeping the Spartans 3-0 (28-26, 25-15, 25-19).
Friday’s win ended Winnipeg’s 14-year drought in Langley.
