The Winnipeg Wesmen created further distance for themselves at the top of the Canada West with a gutty win Friday night. 

The Wesmen men's volleyball team staved off a comeback attempt by a surging Saskatchewan side and came out with a 3-1 (25-22, 25-23, 21-25, 25-22) victory at the Duckworth Centre.

No. 3-ranked Winnipeg improved to 12-1 on the season and, coupled with Alberta's upset loss at home to Thompson Rivers, gave itself more breathing room as the No. 1 team in the conference. 

The Golden Bears have lost three straight and four of their last five and the Wesmen now hold a two-match lead in the race for home-court advantage throughout the playoffs.

But there is still plenty of work to be done and the Wesmen checked off a big box on Friday, knocking off a Huskies team that came in winners of seven in a row to rise into the top four in the conference and to the No. 8 ranking in the country. 

Isaiah Olfert led the Wesmen with 13 kills. Jaxon Rose matched a career-high with 11 kills and hit .455 with just one error. 

Setter Ben Traa, who had a season-high 37 assists, also led the team with career-highs of nine digs and five aces. 

Emmett Graham had a match-high 20 kills for the Huskies, who hit .289 for the night. Isaiah Mamer added 12 kills, and Ethan Smith had a match-high 15 digs. 

The teams meet again Saturday at 5 p.m. (Tickets)