EDMONTON — With server Mary Thomson in fine form, the Brandon Bobcats cruised to a straight-set victory over the MacEwan University Griffins in Canada West women's volleyball action on Friday night.
 
Thomson had a game-high 34 assists as she set a well-balanced Bobcats attack that often had little blocking to deal with as the Griffins had trouble reading the fourth-year star's placements. 
 
"I still think she's the best setter in the league," said MacEwan head coach Ken Briggs after his team fell 25-23, 27-25, 25-21. "She does a very, very good job. I thought she set a good game and really kept us guessing. She picked on our weaknesses.
 
The Griffins jumped out to an 11-5 lead in the first set and looked, for a while to be on their way to an easy win in the opener. But the Bobcats countered with a  9-1 run – an all too familiar story for the Griffins this season – and closed out the set on a Carmen Ross tip.
  
The Griffins switched setters midway through the second set, going with first-year Mackenzie Oshanek-Gladue in place of starter Claire McLoughlin. That kick-started their stagnant right side attack as Kate Rozendaal got going.
 
It seemed the momentum gained from the switch would get them home in the second set, but the Griffins, up 24-22, squandered two match points before falling 27-25 on a double-hit infraction.
 
The Griffins were led by Rozendaal and Cassidy Kinsella with nine kills each. MacKenna Stevenson had a strong game in the middle for the Griffins with seven kills on a .429 percentage.
  
With the defeat, the Griffins fall to 3-12 on the campaign, while the Bobcats move to 5-10. Both teams will be back at it again on Saturday night (5 p.m., City Centre Campus gym).