W-VOLLEYBALL WEEKEND ROUNDUP: Varsity Blues run win streak to 15 games with sweep over RMC

Friday, January 23

Windsor 0 @ Waterloo 3 (25-17, 25-19, 25-21)

The Waterloo Warriors used a complete team effort including 12 service aces to take down the Windsor Lancers in straight sets (25-17, 25-19, 25-21) on Friday night at the PAC.  

Three different players reached double digits in points with Nastsha Spaling, Casey Clunas (Harriston) and Claire Mackenzie (Vancouver) leading the charge.  Emily Needles (Thorndale) was also on cue all night at the setter's position finishing with 26 assists while adding seven digs on the defensive side of the ball.

With the win Waterloo improves to 3-11 on the season while Windsor remains two points ahead at 4-10.

The opening set saw Waterloo take a commanding 7-2 lead after five straight service points by Spaling.  The Warriors would maintain that lead throughout with Needles capping off the set, surprising the Lancers with a dump onto their side of the court for the 25-17 set win.

Windsor would regain their composure early in the second set, taking an early 7-6 lead but again the Warriors stepped up their service game this time with Clunas notching six straight points to give her side a 13-6 lead.  The Warriors opened up that lead to 20-12 on stellar serves by Mackenzie tallying several of her six aces in the match.  Down 24-12, Windsor gave a valiant comeback effort putting away seven straight points but the lead proved to be too much as Waterloo took it 25-19.

The momentum continued in Waterloo's favour early in the third set thanks to great digs by Kristen Bartmann (Uxbridge) and solid attacks by Spaling as the Warriors jumped out to a 19-13 lead.  Windsor was however not ready to roll over, tallying eight of the next 10 points to even the score at 21-all.  The Lancers roll would stop there with Spaling putting away one of her eight kills as Waterloo notched the next four points to win the set 25-21 and match, 3-0.

The story of the match for Windsor was their reception problems with 12 in the match compared to Waterloo's seven.  Waterloo was also a force at the net with 13 team blocks while Windsor could only muster five.

Waterloo will be back at it tomorrow night when they welcome the Western Mustangs (4-10) to the PAC.  Game time is set for 6pm.

Source: Waterloo Warriors

Western 2 @ Guelph 3 (25-20, 21-25, 25-23, 24-26 & 15-8)

Guelph, Ont. - The University of Guelph women's volleyball team snapped their 5 game losing streak at home Friday night with a 3-2 win over the Western Mustangs. Set scores were 25-20, 21-25, 25-23, 24-26 & 15-8.  With the win, the Gryphons improve to 7-7 while Western falls to 4-10.
 
The atmosphere of the match was established early in the first set as each team battled hard with neither team opening up more than a four point lead before the Gryphons finally finished the set 25-20. Western started fast in set two leading 6-2 and maintained the lead to 16-13 at the technical timeout. Guelph fell behind further 18-13 but managed to close to within two at 19-17. From there, the Mustangs were able to tie the match with a 25-21 win.
 
The third set was a back and forth battle once again as the teams were within a couple of points of each other the whole way but the Gryphons hung on to take the set 25-23. The teams battled again in set four and Guelph led by two late, but a 6-1 run by Western forced a fifth set with a 26-24 win. The Gryphons started fast in set five jumping out to an 8-4 lead at the switch and from there were able to close out the match with a 15-8 win.
 
Coach Funk stated, "I don't know if there is a whole lot of difference between the two teams in terms of ability but we were a couple of points better here and there and it produced a win for us tonight. We prepared all week for close end-of-game situations and we certainly had to put that prep to use tonight against Western." Becky Breau led a balanced Guelph offense with 15 points (15 kills) followed by Shannon Morelli with 14 (11 kills, 1 ace, 2 blocks) and Jen Johnstone with 13 (7 kills, 1 ace, 5 blocks) while Kristen Almhjell and Morelli had 15 digs a piece to anchor the defense. The Gryphons are right back at it Saturday night when they host the Windsor Lancers at 6pm.

Source: Guelph Gryphons

York 1 @ McMaster 3 (25-20, 27-25, 23-25, 25-19)

Lauren Mastroluisi broke out in a big way on Friday, as the Marauders emerged from the Burridge Gym with an impressive win.

The fourth-year outside hitter posted a game high of 21 points and McMaster defeated the York Lions 3-1 (25-20, 27-25, 23-25, 25-19) for their sixth consecutive OUA win. The Marauders moved to 11-3 on the season with the victory, as they remain four games clear of the Guelph Gryphons atop the OUA West standings.

Mastroluisi had a career night on Friday, converting 19 of 36 hitting attempts versus just three errors (.444) and adding an ace and a block. Joanna Jedrzejewska and Taylor Brisebois also reached double digits on the night, posting 15.5 and 13.5 points respectively. Carly Heath was a defensive stalwart, racking up 15 digs over the course of the four-set match.

There was very little to separate the two teams on Friday, but a series of problems in service reception hurt the Lions in the opening set, as the Marauders proved to be the steadier of the two teams at the stripe. True to form, York relied heavily on the middle duo of veterans Michelle Pierce and Brittney Hopley to drive their offence, and while the two did their share of damage, the Marauders effectively held the Lions outside hitters at bay.

Playing a cleaner game than their opponents, the Marauders won the first set fairly convincingly. But the visitors showed no signs of going away in the second, and the two sides battled point-for-point as the set progressed. Both teams improved their offensive efficiency in the second, but McMaster's front-court defence struck time and time again, led chiefly by Brisebois, who claimed 7.5 blocks by the end of the match.

McMaster came away with a razor-thin decision in the second, while York returned the favour by surviving a late scare in the third to force the match into a bonus fourth set. There, the Marauders firmly put their feet down, and outpaced the Lions from the get-go. McMaster's offence reached its peak on the night, converting on 12 of 21 hitting attempts versus just two errors in the frame, as the Marauders pulled away for a six-point victory.

It was an important victory for McMaster, the first of the season against the powerhouse OUA East division, coming against a York team that is once again beginning to find its feet after a rough patch in November.

The Marauders will look to chase it with another victory in two days' time, when they host the Nipissing Lakers at the Burridge Gym on Sunday. That match will get underway at 1:00 p.m. and will be broadcast live on Cogeco Cable 14 and OUA.tv.

Source: McMaster Marauders

Saturday, January 25

Nipissing 0 @ York 3

The York University Lions women's volleyball team won its fifth match in its last six outings with a 3-0 victory over the Nipissing Lakers in a home game at the Tait Mackenzie Centre on Saturday afternoon (Jan. 24).
 
The Lions won the first set 25-22, the second 25-13 and the third 25-17.
 
In the first set, the Lakers held the lead with an opening kill from Tracy Hammerton. They furthered their lead with five powerful kills from Hammerton, one from Erika Lapierre and another from Christina Caruso for a score of 17-16. The Lions were always right behind the Lakers by one point, and with a big kill from Brittney Hopley (Thronhill, Ont.), she tied the score at 17-17.
 
The Lakers began to commit a series of errors, then Veneta Mincheva (Gatineau, Que.) hammered two kills on the Lakers, changing the score to 21-18 with the Lions in the lead. Hammerton threatened the lead of the Lions with two final kills, but thanks to a kill from Mincheva, and two final kills from Cadence Currie (Scarborough, Ont.) the Lions took the set with a close score of 25-22.
 
The Lakers opened up the second set with a service ace from Christina Caruso, but the Lions quickly fought back with a kill from Michelle Pierce (Windsor, Ont.). The score remained in a back-and-forth tie throughout the beginning of the second, until Hopley, Currie and Mincheva showered the Lakers with kills, changing the score to 8-4.
 
The Lions continued to lead the second with double the score of the Lakers. They completed 14 kills and one error, while the Lakers completed 11 kills and five errors. At the end of the set Mincheva hit down another kill, and a service error from the Lakers ended the second in favour of the Lions.
 
In the third set, Pierce showcased her excellent blocking and Currie her hard-hitting kills as the Lions held a firm lead. With five kills from Currie, three from Mincheva and two each from Hopley and Pierce, the Lions had a total of 12 kills in the third and only four errors. Although the Lakers started to catch up at the end, the Lions held their ground and ended the game with a final kill from Mincheva.
 
Hopley finished with 10 kills, 2.5 blocks and one service ace for a team-high 13.5 points. Pierce also had 13.5 points on seven kills, 3.5 blocks and three service aces. Kirsten Dillon (Surrey, B.C.) led with 23 assists and Carley Flemmer (Delta, B.C.) posted 16 digs.
 
Hammerton led all players in the match with 15.5 points on 15 kills and one assisted block. Jade DeCoste had 22 assists and Jessica Klassen posted 17 digs.
 
The win keeps the Lions in the hunt for a playoff spot in the OUA East, and they remain fifth with a 9-6 record. The Lakers are just behind them in sixth at 5-9.
 
The Lions will have a tough match-up in their next contest against the undefeated and nationally-ranked Toronto Varsity Blues, on Friday (Jan. 30) at Toronto at 6pm.

Source: York Lions

Toronto 3 @ Queen's 0 (25-18, 25-17, and 25-17)

KINGSTON, Ont. (January 24, 2015) – This Saturday afternoon the Gaels (10-5) were defeated by the No.4 Toronto Varsity Blues (14-0) in three strong rallied sets with set scores 25-18, 25-17, and 25-17.
 
The Gaels opened the scoring in the first set with a serving ace from Brett Hagarty (Aurora, Ont.).  Queen's managed to match the No.4 ranked Varsity Blues early on in the set but Toronto stepped up their defence to shut down the Gaels attack and take a nine point lead.  Despite Queen's best effort to keep the set alive with a three-point streak at Toronto's game point, a left side kill from the Varsity Blues ended it 25-18.
 
In the second set the Varsity Blues asserted their dominance by getting the first point on the board.  The Gaels took their first lead since the first set as Brett managed to break her way through the Toronto defence.  The Varsity Blues managed to get an 11-point edge on the Gaels but Nikki Slikboer (Seagrave, Ont.) shut it down with a right side kill and followed up with a serving ace.  Unable to close the deficit, Toronto took the set 25-17.
 
Once again, in the final set the Varsity Blues opened the scoring as they took the lead but Toronto, looking a bit disorganized, had a few attacking errors which tied the game up early at 5-5.  The Gaels held on as Slikboer and Brett showed immense versatility as they doubled on defence and attack but Toronto managed a to take a slight lead.  Queen's rallied hard against the Varsity Blues but was stopped by Toronto's impenetrable defence and strong attacks.  An accidental double touch by the Gaels finished todays match early for Queen's, 25–17.
 
The top scorer in this afternoons match was Queen's player, Brett Hagarty, with 16 kills and one serving ace.  Close behind was Varsity Blues senior player Jennifer Neilson with 13 kills and three serving aces.  
 
The Gaels are back in action tomorrow afternoon as they host the Ryerson Rams at 1pm in the ARC main gym.

Source: Queen's Gaels

Ryerson 3 @ RMC 1 (25-15, 21-25, 25-21, 25-15)