Trent Excalibur Men's Volleyball Take Down No.6 Queen's Gaels

Trent Excalibur Men's Volleyball Take Down No.6 Queen's Gaels

Excalibur victorious 3-1 to record first-ever win over nationally ranked opponent

The Trent Excalibur Men's Volleyball team (4-15) made program history in defeating the no. 6 nationally ranked Queen's Gaels (14-5), three sets to one Friday evening at the Athletics Centre. The victory marks the first time the program has defeated a nationally ranked opponent.

The first set was a tightly contested affair, with neither team able to establish much of a lead throughout the set. It finished with Trent edging ahead at the end, 25-22, to take a 1-0 advantage.

It was more of the same in the second set as both teams continued to play some excellent volleyball. The teams exchanged points for much of the set until the Excalibur started to pull away at the end and closed the set by a 25-21 score to lead 2-0.

No. 6 Queen's roared back in the third set and showed why they are one of the top teams in the country. The Gaels led most of the set en route to a 25-19 win.

The green and white rebounded quickly and came out flying in set four. Playing with precision and a relentless attack, the Excalibur took the final set 25-18, and the historic match victory 3-1.

The win was the first time Trent had ever defeated Queen's. With one more game left in their campaign, the Excalibur have already set the program record for most wins in a season (4), which is two more than any previous year.

The top performers for the Excalibur were rookie Brock Drover (Enfield, NS), who had 17 points including three service aces and senior captain Nic Badalato (Kingston, ON), who led the squad in kills (14) and totaled 16.5 points. Outside hitter Charlie Winser (Georgetown, ON), added 11 digs and posted 15 points with a .455 kill percentage, while setter Aly Saydam (Ottawa, ON), totaled 38 assists.

Trent will conclude their season at home on Saturday, February 15 at 4 p.m. with a rematch against the Gaels. The game will be the Excalibur's Senior Night. Tickets will be available at the gate one hour prior to game time.