Dormann dominated in five-set thriller over Guelph

TORONTO, Ont. - Third-year right side hitter Alina Dormann led all players with 27.5 points as the University of Toronto Varsity Blues women's volleyball team defeated the Guelph Gryphons 3-2 (22-25, 25-19, 25-21, 24-26, 15-4) in OUA quarter-final action on Saturday afternoon at Goldring Centre for High Performance Sport.
 
With the win, the Blues advance to the OUA Final Four for the seventh straight season and will await the results of today's other quarter-finals to determine opponents and location.
 
Dormann notched a game-high 22 kills, while adding three aces, 2.5 blocks and 18 digs on the day. Third-year middle Anna Licht recorded a career-high 16.5 points off of 14 kills and 2.5 blocks, while fourth-year veteran Anna Feore matched her career-high with 25 digs, and added nine points.
 
Jenna Woock had 10.5 points off of eight kills, 1.5 blocks and one ace, and added 10 digs, while fellow rookie Rayn Perry tallied a game-high 42 assists and 15 digs in the victory.
 
The Gryphons got out to a narrow 7-4 lead in the first set, but two big blocks from Feore and Woock, and a kill from Dormann evened the score at 8-8. Both teams traded points and a kill from Licht gave Toronto a 16-15 advantage at the technical timeout. The seesaw battle ensued and a final kill from Michaela Hellinga sealed the first set, 25-22, in favour of the Gryphons.
 
The Blues got out to a 3-0 advantage in the second but that was quickly matched by the Gryphons. U of T found their rhythm though and a Woock kill gave the home team a 16-10 advantage at the technical timeout. Guelph came back to bring the set within four but the Blues held on and another Woock kill sealed the second-set victory, 25-19.
 
The third set went back-and-forth with neither team building more than a two-point lead up until 9-9. From there, a 7-1 run and a Feore ace put the Blues up 16-10 at the break. Toronto extended their lead to eight (21-13) but the Gryphons inched back within two (23-21); however, two final kills from Dormann gave Toronto a 2-1 match lead with the 25-21 third set win.  
 
U of T took an early 6-0 advantage in the fourth set and, despite some rallying from the Gryphons, Toronto took a 16-12 lead at the technical timeout. It was a long Guelph come back from there as the visiting team ended the set on a 10-4 run to force the fifth and deciding.
 
Toronto built an 8-3 advantage at the fifth set switch and didn't look back. A final ace from Veronica Derylo sealed the five-set victory, 15-4, for the Blues.

Source: Varsity Blues