They arrived as welcome guests, but they left a bad taste in their hosts’ mouths.
The U of M Bisons men’s hockey team and women’s volleyball team crossed the provincial border to face the University of Regina Cougars and came back with some wins in the standings.
Men’s hockey
Bisons men’s hockey fans are likely used to this story by now, but the herd earned a split in another weekend series to stay .500 on the year.
Not satisfied with a regulation win on Friday, the herd made the first game of the weekend a nail-biter, allowing a last-second goal then winning in overtime.
Fifth-year defender Sean Christensen broke open the scoring in the second period, picking up his first of the season less than three minutes into the frame to make it 1-0 Manitoba. James Hilsendager evened the score two minutes later for Regina, but Dylan Thiessen scored to snatch the lead back for Manitoba at 2-1.
Jonah Wasylak gave Manitoba a two-goal cushion in the third, and Ben Duperreault brought the Cougars within one and it looked like Manitoba would take the game in regulation. Riley Lamb made a pair of stellar saves in the dying seconds to preserve the 3-2 lead, but Regina veteran Tristan Frei had other ideas.
He picked up his third goal of the season with a second left on the clock to send the game to overtime, where Keaton Jameson spoiled the fun with a goal to give Manitoba the 4-3 win.
Regina came back with energy in game two of the weekend, withstanding a Bisons comeback to win 3-2 in a shootout.
Ty Barnstable opened the scoring for Regina in the first and Connor Odelein made it 2-0 in the second, before Adam Henry continued a stellar scoring campaign with a goal to make it 2-1 heading into the third.
Josh Tripp scored late in the final frame to tie it, overtime solved nothing and the two sides went to the shootout. In the skills competition Jeremey Leipsic and Henry failed to score for the herd, while Duperreault and Isaac Schacher potted one each to give Regina the win.
Women’s volleyball
The Bisons women’s volleyball team began to put a tough start to the season behind it, picking up its first two wins of the campaign in a sweep of the Cougars.
Friday’s match was a statement for Manitoba, winning sets by large margins, juxtaposed with scrappy wins in a 3-1 victory.
The herd started the match strong, taking the opening set 25-14 before Regina came back to eke out a 25-23 second set win to tie the match 1-1. The Bisons eked out a 25-23 set win of their own in the third and claimed the win in the fourth with a lopsided 25-17 win.
Game two of the weekend was much the same, as Manitoba picked up another 3-1 win in similar fashion to complete the weekend sweep.
As with Friday, Manitoba opened Saturday’s affair with a strong opening set win — this time 25-19 — before the Cougars came roaring back with a 25-23 second set win to tie it. The Bisons took the next two sets 25-19 and 25-20 respectively to take the match and the weekend.
