The University of Regina's women's volleyball team opened up the 2014-15 Canada West season with a three-set loss at Manitoba on Friday night in Winnipeg.

After Manitoba took the first set by a 25-19 margin, it looked as though the Cougars were well on their way to knotting the match at a set apiece after jumping out to a 10-3 advantage in the second. But the Bisons turned the tide with nine consecutive points late in the set, turning an 18-15 Cougar lead into a six-point Manitoba advantage.

The Bisons went on to a 25-22 win in that second set, and then hit .500 as a team in their match-clinching 25-17 win in the third.

Rachel Cockrell led Manitoba with 16 kills and dominated at the service line with six aces, while Brittany Habing had 23 assists and libero Cassie Bujan led all players with 16 digs.

For the Cougars, Michelle Sweeting had a team-high 12 kills and hit .400 for the match. Leah Shevkenek had a match-high 27 assists, with Chelsea Ziolkowski registering 10 digs and Molly Wade-Cummings a team-high five blocks. Tori Glynn and Jenna Krahn also started for the Cougars with Lindsay Braul getting the call at libero.

The two teams will meet again on Saturday afternoon. Match time is scheduled for 1 p.m. (CDT) at the Investors Group Athletic Centre in Winnipeg.