W-VOLLEYBALL PLAYOFF ROUNDUP: Gryphons beat Badgers; to host Blues, Gee-Gees and Mustangs in Final Four
Saturday, February 14
Queen's 0 @ Toronto 3 (25-13, 25-12, 25-17)
The No. 3 nationally ranked University of Toronto Varsity Blues women's volleyball team defeated the Queen's Gaels 3-0 (25-13, 25-12, 25-17) in OUA quarter-final action on Saturday afternoon (Feb. 14) at Goldring Centre for High Performance Sport.
With the win, the Blues advance to their fourth straight OUA Final Four, to be hosted by the highest remaining seed in the West, next weekend (Feb. 20-22).
The University of Toronto is also the proud host of the 2015 CIS women's volleyball championship, presented by Canuck Stuff, February 26-March 1. Advance tickets are on sale at varsityblues.ca/cisvolleyball.
"I am really proud of how focused they are, and they're very clear, the team's very clear on where they want to go and what they want to do," said Varsity Blues head coach Kristine Drakich. "They were sort of on a mission this week, and so today was a demonstration of that. It was really a team effort. Everybody played their role extremely well."
Third-year left side hitter Caleigh Cruickshank led all players with 16 points, notching nine kills, four blocks and three aces, while also adding nine digs on the day.
Veteran middle Bojana Radan also had nine kills and four blocks, while fifth-year right side Jennifer Neilson notched nine kills and five digs.
Sophomore middle Tessa Davis had six kills, three blocks and one ace, with third-year setter Madelyn Mandryk adding 35 assists and nine digs and Denise Wooding leading all players with 26 digs in the win.
The first set saw Toronto leading 10-3 early and a Neilson kill gave the Blues a 16-7 lead at the technical timeout. Toronto kept rolling and back-to-back aces from Cruickshank sealed the first set 25-13.
Radan got the Blues out to an 8-1 lead in the second and she came up with a big kill to give the Blues a 16-8 lead at the break. Cruickshank and Davis came up with a nice block to end the second set 25-12 in favour of the Blues.
Toronto again got out to an early 8-3 lead but the Gaels rallied to bring the game within two (10-8). A Davis kill gave Toronto a 16-10 lead and U of T closed out the win with a 25-17 third set victory.
Third-year outside hitter Brett Hagerty led the Gaels with 10 kills and 13 digs, with Becky Wilson adding 21 digs in the loss.
Source: Toronto Varsity Blues
Ryerson 0 @ Ottawa 3 (25-19, 25-23, 25-21)
The Ottawa Gee-Gees have advanced to the OUA Final Four for the fifth straight season thanks to a 3-0 sweep of the Ryerson Rams in the conference quarter-final on Saturday afternoon at Montpetit Hall. Ottawa rallied back from big deficits in the second and third sets to carry the match 25-19, 25-23, 25-21.
Myriam English led the Gee-Gees with 16 points in her final game at Montpetit Hall, while her rival on the Rams, Veronica Livingston, scored 12.5 in the losing effort.
Ottawa opened a 10-6 lead in the first set before Ryerson responded with an 8-4 run including a kill and two aces from Alex White to make it 15-14. The Gee-Gees led 16-13 at the technical timeout but played efficient volleyball down the stretch to pull away and win the set 25-19.
Myriam English was a force in the first set, landing eight kills to lead the garnet and grey attack while Kaly Soro contributed five of her own.
The Rams responded in the second set and got on a hot streak from the service line, building an 11-5 lead before Ottawa called for a timeout. 6-foot middle Theanna Vernon was very effective for Ryerson in the second set, hammering home five kills in the frame.
"We had to make it difficult for them to set that ball," said Gee-Gees head coach Lionel Woods, acknowledging the impact Vernon had on the game. "Our scramble defence today was great and that's what you need in playoffs."
Ottawa's middle Alix Durivage had a huge role in the front row with two kills and a big block before a series of four straight errors by Ryerson had levelled the score at 15-14 in Ottawa's favour. Still Ryerson led 20-18 before some spectacular defence on the Gee-Gees side allowed the home squad to complete the comeback and record the set win.
The third set remained close through the initial points before the Gee-Gees had a three point edge at the technical timeout. Ottawa extended its lead to six, highlighted by a solo block by Kira Tome, and held match point at 24-18. The Rams rallied for three straight points in hopes of extending their season but a kill from Durivage gave the Gee-Gees the 25-21 third set win and match victory.
"We weren't passing well at the beginning of sets two and three and I credit our players for putting their foot down and saying 'we have to be better' instead of waiting for Ryerson to slow down," commented Woods. "I'm really proud of our kids and this was a great playoff game."
Ottawa will travel to the Final Four next weekend. The tournament will be hosted at the highest remaining seed in the OUA's West Division when Saturday night's playoff games are complete.
Source: Ottawa Gee-Gees
Brock 0 @ Guelph 3
Guelph, ON – The University of Guelph women's volleyball team advanced to the OUA Final Four for the second consecutive year with a 3-0 OUA West quarter-final win over the Brock Badgers at the W.F. Mitchell Athletics Center Saturday night. Set scores were 25-15, 25-20 & 25-15. The first set started with both teams battling hard but the Gryphons forged a 16-10 lead at the technical timeout. Guelph expanded the lead later and finished winning comfortably at 25-15. Set 2 was a similar battle early but Brock took a 16-12 lead in the technical timeout. From there, a 9-3 run from the Gryphons allowed them to seize the lead and close out the set at 25-20. The third set saw Guelph jump out to an early lead and expand it to as many as 13 later. Brock had one last push in them to get as close as eight but a Maddie DeDecker kill finished the set and match at 25-15.
Coach Funk said, "Our group stayed very focused and played with great energy and execution tonight. We had good balance in attack and our serve receive was very steady which is a great combination for us. We are very happy to get back to the Final Four again this year." Maddie DeDecker was the top pointer producer for Guelph with 14 points (12 kills, 2 aces) followed by Shannon Morelli (7 kills, 2 aces, 1 block) and Becky Breau (8 kills, 1 ace, 1 block) with 10 apiece while Kristen Almhjell and Katelyn Larson had 15 digs each to anchor the defense.
Thanks to fourth seeded Western knocking off top seeded McMaster later Saturday night, the second seeded Gryphons will now host the OUA Final Four as the highest remaining seed in the OUA West division. The Final Four will take place at the W.F. Mitchell Athletics Centre on Friday, February 20th and Saturday, February 21st with games at 6:00 and 8:30pm each night.
Source: Guelph Gryphons
Western 3 @ McMaster 1 (25-21, 23-25, 25-21, 25-20)
HAMILTON, Ont. – Disregarding the Valentine's Day spirit, the Mustangs broke the hearts of the energetic maroon crowd who came out to support McMaster at the Burridge Gymnasium on February 14. After taking the win in four sets (25-21, 23-25, 25-21, 25-20), Western will continue on in the playoffs as they advance to the OUA Final Four Championship while the season comes to an end for the Marauders, who were last year's OUA Champions.
The first set was rocky, with long rallies that tested the athleticism of both teams. With 13 purple and white kills, powerful attacks were at the centre of Western's strategy. Staying tight to the Mustangs score, the Marauders kept the point gap narrow, responding with 11 of their own kills in the first set.
Working on tight defense and covering, Western was leading the set by only two points at 21-19. Moments later, rookie Kelsey Veltman ended the set for the Mustangs at 25-22 as she stuffed the oncoming Marauder attacker and sent the ball shooting into open court.
The second set started off with McMaster and Western locked in a seemingly endless exchange of points with the score tied at 9-9. The Mustangs, falling behind at 10-13, struggled to get around the maroon blocks. Slowly but surely Western began to chip away at the point difference, and were only behind by one at the technical timeout and soon tied the set at 17-17.
A point run from McMaster put them back in the lead at 17-21, as their blocks continued to trip up the Mustangs. Refocusing, the Mustangs rallied to force the Marauders into their own timeout at 23-23. Returning to the court, McMaster knocked out two quick points to end the set at 23-25.
Looking for a repeat of the second set, McMaster came out swinging and quickly built up a three-point lead over the Mustangs. Maintaining the difference at 6-9, McMaster continued to focus their efforts on blocking – as it had proven effective in earlier sets – and consistent serving so as not to give up any points.
With a stronger emphasis on defence and covering during attacks, the Mustangs eradicated the point deficit and matched the maroon score at 15. Outscoring the Mustangs, the Marauders pulled back into the lead and were two points ahead at 18-20.
Outscoring McMaster in the final points of the set, the Mustangs surpassed the defending OUA champions and closed out the set 25-21.
The Mustang momentum was still on high from the earlier set, as they led the Marauders 8-5 early on. At the technical time-out, Western still had the upper hand.
Although the Marauders managed to delay the purple and white victory by narrowing the point difference to five points, they couldn't prevent Candice Scott from ending the match with an ace.
Veltman topped the scoresheets of both teams, recording a total of 21 from 13 kills, three service aces, and five solo blocks. Following Veltman on the Mustangs scoresheet was Serena Smith who earned 14 points. Leading the Marauders was second year middle Maicee Sorenson, who totaled 14.5 points on the night.
The Mustangs will return to the court next weekend as they compete in the OUA Final Four Championship, beginning Friday, February 20. The championship will be hosted by the highest remaining seed in the West Division.
Source: Western Mustangs
