WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL FINAL FOUR: York and Ottawa to meet for gold
The No. 4 ranked York University Lions women's volleyball team won their playoff opener in straight sets on Friday (Feb. 22) night, downing the Toronto Varsity Blues at the Tait Mackenzie Centre.
Lions outside hitter Brandie Wilkerson (Innisfil, Ont.) showed why she was selected as a first team OUA All Star, as she finished with an incredible 21.5 points on 15 kills and five blocks leading her team to the win.
The Lions translated the energy created by the raucous crowd at the Tait Mackenzie Centre into an inspiring start to the contest. Middle blocker Michelle Pierce (Windsor, Ont.) was completely locked-in early and was a major factor in giving the Lions a quick 9-3 lead. A timeout by Toronto would do nothing to stop the bleeding, as Pierce continued to make her presence felt on the court. Wilkerson started to heat up shortly thereafter, contributing some impressive blocks to extend York's lead to 17-6. The Blues managed to play better volleyball for the rest of the set, but they were not able to go on a run to give them a chance to steal it. The Lions would take the first set by a convincing 25-14 score.
Another quick start was in order for the Lions in the second set, as they jumped out to a 5-1 lead behind Melissa Humana-Paredes (Toronto, Ont.) and Wilkerson. However, this time around a timeout would seem to spark the Blues, as they went on a 7-2 run to get within one point of the Lions at 9-8. The set would continue to see Toronto put forth a brilliant effort, as they rallied several times to keep York on their toes. However, the Lions were too much to handle down the stretch, and they won the set 25-21 to take a commanding 2-0 lead in the contest.
The Lions looked eager to get the sweep in the third set, as they scored the first seven points to take a sizeable lead. The Blues would respond with a mini 4-1 run of their own and York held an 8-4 advantage in the early stages. The Lions would then take 12 of the next 16 points to open up a substantial 20-10 lead, putting them five points away from advancing to the gold medal game. However, the Varsity Blues would not back down, as a furious 8-2 run saw the set become much closer than anticipated. Fortunately, the Lions managed to regroup and they won the set by a final score of 25-20, completing the three set sweep.
First team OUA All Star middle blocker Pierce was great in the win, as she had 12 points on 9 kills and 3 blocks. Jennifer Black (London, Ont.) led the team defensively with a game high 19 digs.
The Varsity Blues did not have a double-digit point getter in the loss, as Denise Wooding (Vancouver, B.C.) and Shannon Rossall (Calgary, Alb.) were tied for the team lead with six points. Jennifer Nielson led the team on the defensive end with 14 digs.
The second semifinal began much closer than the first as neither team was able to go on an extended run. The Rams led early and looked like they were going to take the set but the Gee-Gees came storming back late and won 26-24.
The loss seemed to deflate the Rams as the Gee-Gees led the second set from start to finish and never looked back from there. Ottawa completed the sweep in convincing fashion as the squad held a comfortable lead throughout and won the set by six points.
Ottawa's Kristina Krueger Schwanke (Blumenau, Brazil), who was named the OUA's player of the year earlier this week, had a game-high 19 points on 14 kills, three blocks and two service aces. Myriam English (Ottawa) added 15 points on 13 kills, one block and one service ace, while on defence Stephanie Theiler (Winchester, Ont.) paced the Gee-Gees with 12 digs.
The Rams were led by Alexandra Whyte (Whitby, Ont.), who had a team-high eight points on seven kills and one service ace.
Source: York Sports Info
