November 8, 2010
M-VOLLEYBALL ROUNDUP: Western stays atop OUA with weekend sweep
York Lions @ Western Mustangs
The Western Mustangs continued their unbeaten streak as they defeated the York Lions in three straight sets (25-20, 25-14, 25-19) at Alumni Hall on Saturday night.
York took an early lead in both the first and third set, and solid serving from Phil James of Ottawa, Ont. and 11 kills from Garrett May of Toronto sealed the deal for the Mustangs putting them at 5-0 on the season.
Solid offense from York late in the first set brought them to within four points of Western, but despite five kills from outside hitter Tom Podstawka, they couldn’t capitalize and Western took the set 25-20.
In the second set, poor service and returns from York gave Western an early eight-point lead. Plays were back and forth with unforced errors coming from both teams.
Late in the set, with Western ahead by four, James had an explosive kill that seemed to motivate Western. May continued to lead Western in kills in the second set with Western winning 25-14.
The third set saw York’s Nikola Sandic put up two aces to give York the lead for the first time since the first set and the Mustangs were down 15-6. On the receiving end of the third straight serve from Sandic, Reid Halpenny (Exeter, Ont.) passed the serve but could not get back up in time to dig the kill that York quickly put back at him. May had his third kill of the set to give possession back to Western, but just as quickly gave possession back to York. Western sided out on a hit by Halpenny, but was blocked on his second attempt at a kill.
York led Western 13-8 with great defensive and offensive plays and began to capitalize on Western’s sloppy play and miscommunication in the third set. Down by six, Western gained a point as York was out of rotation.
Matt Poulin (Winnipeg, Man.) took advantage and hit one down the line to bring Western to within four points of tying the game. Stellar serving from Halpenny brought the Mustangs from behind to tie up the game at 15 and York missed the court on two attempts afterwards.
Halpenny’s serving continued to frustrate York and they were forced to make a substitution. York held their own for two more points, but could not return a kill from May and were once again stuffed by a Poulin block.
York continued to make unforced errors and with once point away from taking the third set, James served into the net to give York possession. Waite responded with a kill to give Western the final point and the third set. Western went on a 16-4 run in the third set.
Matt Poulin (Winnipeg, Man.) took advantage and hit one down the line to bring Western to within four points of tying the game. Stellar serving from Halpenny brought the Mustangs from behind to tie up the game at 15 and York missed the court on two attempts afterwards.
Halpenny’s serving continued to frustrate York and they were forced to make a substitution. York held their own for two more points, but could not return a kill from May and were once again stuffed by a Poulin block.
York continued to make unforced errors and with once point away from taking the third set, James served into the net to give York possession. Waite responded with a kill to give Western the final point and the third set. Western went on a 16-4 run in the third set.
Players of the game were James for Western and libero Timothy Yu for York.
Source: Mustangs Athletics
Ryerson Rams @ Windsor Lancers
The Lancer men’s volleyball team swept their second straight game Saturday night, taking Ryerson 3-0 (25-17, 25-16, 15-21) at home.
Ryerson started off strong in the first set with a 3-0 lead, but it wasn’t long before the Lancer’s took control, reaching the first technical time out 8-7 and the second 16-11. Prier’s well set plays to Williamson, Le and Oake (3 kills each, 0 errors) set the offense in motion a! nd contributed to the Lancer’s .500 attack percentage over the Rams -.37. An explosive hit from Harrison Oake closed the set 25-17 Lancers.
The Lancers power carried into the second set as they, again, overpowered the Rams and took both technicals with ease. A three point streak brought the Lancers within winning range and rookie Adam Thompson finished it for the Lancers with a solo block. Final score: 25-16 Lancers.
Despite taking an early lead in the third, the Rams were able to catch-up reaching a tie at 8-8. Back and forth play carried on until the Lancers eventually regained the lead and took second technical 16-13. The game’s intensity continued as the Lancers were able to turn around --and score off of --some seemingly impossible defensive situations. The Lancers finished off the final set 25-21.
The Lancers had a total of 11 team blocks. Kyle Williamson had 12 kills, Ryan Le 9 kills 5 digs, Harrison Oake 8 kills.
Source: Lancers Athletics
Queen’s Gaels @ Waterloo Warriors
The No. 9 Queen's Gaels overcame a tough Waterloo Warriors squad as the team won in five sets Friday night in Waterloo.
Set scores were 25-17, 25-20, 18-25, 22-25, 15-4.
After the Gaels easily controlled play in the opening two sets, the team's passing game slipped in the third and fourth sets allowing Waterloo back into the match. However, the team re-focused in the final set and pulled out their third straight win to open the season.
Joren Zeeman of Cambridge, Ont., led the Gaels with 19 kills and three service aces on the night while Bryan Fautley of Oakville, Ont., also had three aces to go along with 14 kills.
Alex Oneid led the Gaels defence with 10 digs in the match.
Jordan Dyck of St. Catharines, Ont., and Aleks Poldma of Toronto, were the leading scorers for the Warriors, each recording 10 kills.
Set scores were 25-17, 25-20, 18-25, 22-25, 15-4.
After the Gaels easily controlled play in the opening two sets, the team's passing game slipped in the third and fourth sets allowing Waterloo back into the match. However, the team re-focused in the final set and pulled out their third straight win to open the season.
Joren Zeeman of Cambridge, Ont., led the Gaels with 19 kills and three service aces on the night while Bryan Fautley of Oakville, Ont., also had three aces to go along with 14 kills.
Alex Oneid led the Gaels defence with 10 digs in the match.
Jordan Dyck of St. Catharines, Ont., and Aleks Poldma of Toronto, were the leading scorers for the Warriors, each recording 10 kills.
Source: Gaels Athletics
RMC Paladins @ Laurier Golden Hawks
The men played their home opener against the Royal Military College Paladins, taking the victory winning 3-0. This improves the Hawks record to 3-2 this season.
The Hawks did a good job keeping the home crowd happy as they overpowered and outplayed RMC, winning each set by the scores of 25-20, 25-19, and 25-16. It was the Hawks' attackers that helped solidify the win as the team combined for a total of 41 kills and seven service aces. The stand out performances for Laurier in this game came from their setter Nolan Molyneux (Etobicoke, Ont.) who positioned himself well for 30 assists and defensively had nine digs. Greg Houston (Chatham, Ont.) and Cameron Wheelan (Barrie, Ont.) combined for a total of 22 kills with Houston displaying a solid attack percentage of .429 and Wheelan adding five service aces.
RMC moves to a 0-3 record this year but have some bright spots on their team coming from Paul Demers who hit down for 13 kills against Laurier, had seven digs and three assisted blocks. Sean Vanthournout also contributed a total of nine points for RMC.
The Hawks did a good job keeping the home crowd happy as they overpowered and outplayed RMC, winning each set by the scores of 25-20, 25-19, and 25-16. It was the Hawks' attackers that helped solidify the win as the team combined for a total of 41 kills and seven service aces. The stand out performances for Laurier in this game came from their setter Nolan Molyneux (Etobicoke, Ont.) who positioned himself well for 30 assists and defensively had nine digs. Greg Houston (Chatham, Ont.) and Cameron Wheelan (Barrie, Ont.) combined for a total of 22 kills with Houston displaying a solid attack percentage of .429 and Wheelan adding five service aces.
RMC moves to a 0-3 record this year but have some bright spots on their team coming from Paul Demers who hit down for 13 kills against Laurier, had seven digs and three assisted blocks. Sean Vanthournout also contributed a total of nine points for RMC.
Source: Hawks Athletics
Toronto Varsity Blues @ Guelph Gryphons
The Guelph Gryphon men’s volleyball team came out on top after a match against the Toronto Varsity Blues on Nov. 5 in Guelph at the W.F. Mitchell Centre. The game finished 3-0 in Guelph’s favour, with set scores of 25-15, 25-21, and 25-19. The Gryphons advance to 4-1 on the season.
In the beginning of the first set there was no clear leader, and each team stayed within a point or so of each other. But, this stand-still didn’t last long, and the Gryphons were able to rack up some impressive kills. Gryphon left-side Andrew McWilliam (North Dunwich) was unstoppable, as he ripped the ball through the Blue’s defence. The Varsity Blues won a number of points due to Gryphon service errors, but Guelph gave some rookies some playing time near the end of the set and they earned the win 25-15.
In the second set, the Blues were able to challenge the Gryphons throughout the match. Guelph continued to give away points from unnecessary technical errors, and also struggled with defence, and so they didn’t gain a lead until the last few minutes. The set ended 25-21.
The Varsity Blues continued to hold it together for the first half of the third set, with the set score growing point-by-point. The Gryphons began to pull themselves together defensively. Winston Rosser (Whitby, ON) Ryan Killeen (Oakville, ON) and McWilliam all continued to put pressure on the Varsity Blues and they were soon able to build a lead. Gryphon rookie Kyle Wilson (Stratford, ON) was subbed in during the last few minutes of the game and showed great potential . The set finished 25-19.
McWilliams led the Gryphons with 12 kills and 2 aces, along with Rosser who had 12 kills and 3 digs.
The Varsity Blues were led by Jonathon Adomait (Dundas, ON) who had 7 kills and 1 ace and Adam Palmer (Ottawa, ON) had 5 kills and 1 ace.
Source: Gryphons Athletics
OUA SCHEDULE AND RESULTS
November 5
Ryerson, 0 @ Western, 3
Queen’s, 3 @ Waterloo, 2
RMC, 0 @ Laurier, 3
York, 0 @ Windsor, 3
Toronto, 0 @ Guelph, 3
November 6
Guelph, 1 @ McMaster, 3
RMC, 0 @ Waterloo, 3
York, 0 @ Western, 3
Queen’s, 3 @ Laurier, 1
Ryerson, 0 @ Windsor, 3
November 7
McMaster, 3 @ Toronto, 1
November 12
8:00pm – York @ Queen’s
8:00pm – Ryerson @ RMC
November 13
12:00pm – Laurier @ Waterloo
2:00pm – Toronto @ Western
8:00pm – Ryerson @ Queen’s
8:00pm – York @ RMC
November 14
3:00pm – Toronto @ Windsor
