M-VOLLEYBALL ROUNDUP: No. 2 Marauders run win streak to nine with win over No. 8 Guelph
Friday, November 28
Western 1 @ Ryerson 3 (25-14, 23-25, 25-12, 25-14)
TORONTO – The Ryerson Rams men's volleyball team returned to the win column with a 3-1 (25-14, 23-25, 25-12, 25-14) victory over the visiting Western Mustangs on Friday night at the Mattamy Athletic Centre.
The trio of Robert Wojcik, Alex Dawson and Lucas Coleman caused problems for the Western defense all night, combining for 40 of the Rams 51 kills. Wojcik (Whitby, Ont.) had a match-high 14 kills, while Dawson (Scarborough, Ont.) and Coleman (Brooklin, Ont.) each added 13 kills.
Justin Scapinello (London, Ont.) was the only Mustang in double digit kills, finishing the night with 11 kills.
Ryerson (7-3) jumped out to a 16-8 lead in the first set and were able to carry the momentum through the remainder of the set.
The second set was much tighter as the team's were tied 22-22. A pair of Scapinello kills would carry the Mustangs (4-5) to a 25-23 win.
Leading 8-6 in the third, Ryerson would go on a 13-2 run to take control of the set. It was much the same in the fourth as the Rams went on a 12-3 run before finishing the match with a 25-14 set victory.
The Rams return to action Saturday against the Windsor Lancers. Game time is 6pm at the Mattamy Athletic Centre.
Source: Ryerson Rams
Windsor 3 @ Toronto 0 (25-22, 25-16, 25-21)
The University of Toronto Varsity Blues men's volleyball team defeated the Windsor Lancers 3-0 (25-22, 25-16, 25-21) on Friday, November 28 at Goldring Centre for High Performance Sport.
With the win, the Blues improve to 3-7, while the Lancers drop to 4-5 in OUA action.
Rookie left side hitter Thomas Meier led Toronto with nine kills, five digs, three aces and two blocks. Veteran Jake Dysselhof added nine kills, eight digs and two blocks, with Zia Karim notching seven kills, four digs and one block on the night.
Michael Denton added 31 assists and five digs, while Alex Ferris recorded a team-high nine digs in the win.
Windsor was led by Alexander Vukovic who recorded nine kills. Garbriel Burlacu added seven kills and a game-high 10 digs in the loss.
The Varsity Blues return to the court tomorrow night as they host the Western Mustangs at Goldring Centre for High Performance Sport. Game time is set for 7 p.m.
Guelph 1 @ Waterloo 3 (20-25, 25-17, 26-24, 25-18)
The Warriors were looking to close out their pre-holiday season on a winning note, and turned to a familiar face to do so. Setter Gibson Graham (Markham) returned to his starting role with the black and gold to lead his side to a 3-1 (20-25, 25-17, 26-24, 25-18) victory over the dominant Gryphons. Graham had been sidelined to open the season after suffering a fluke injury during training camp. Waterloo moves to 7-4 on the season with a 4-game win streak in-tact while Guelph moves to 7-3.
Waterloo jumped out to an early 3-0 lead in front of a large raucous crowd that was in attendance for the final Think Pink event of the month for the Warriors. Waterloo would lead 16-15 at the technical timeout and it would go down from there. Attacking/service errors hurt the Warriors down the stretch as Waterloo dropped the opening set to Guelph 20-25 and fell behind 1-0 early in the match.
Waterloo again jumped out to an early 4-2 lead in the second set before an extended rally was pushed out of bounds by Guelph's Eric Wagner to put the Gryphons in an early 5-2 hole. Waterloo would own the next stanza as they extended to a 16-6 lead at the technical timeout largely as a result of solid blocking that thwarted the Guelph offence. Guelph would make a half-hearted comeback but would eventually drop the set to the Warriors 25-17 which knotted the match at 1.
One of Waterloo's strongest points on the net was their passing game as it allowed Graham to run a relentless offence which was too quick for Guelph to handle. Waterloo had a 9-6 lead before forcing Guelph into a timeout and later saw Jordan McConkey (Stratford) with a monster kill to give the black and gold a 17-13 lead. An absolute dog fight ensured to close out the third set but Waterloo emerged victorious 26-24 and took a 2-1 lead in the match.
The Gryphons were not going to simply lay over and gave themselves a 7-5 lead early in the 4th set, however, Waterloo had other plans. Waterloo would score 6 of the next 7 points to force Guelph into a timeout who were trailing 11-8. Jordan Dyck (St. Catharines), one of Graham's favourite targets on the night, scored a huge kill later in the match to go ahead 18-15 and forcing Guelph into their second timeout. Waterloo would take advantage of the momentum generated from the crowd and eventually win the set 25-18 and win the match 3-1.
Aidan Simone (London) led the Warriors with 14 kills, 3 service aces and 8 digs while Dyck had 11 kills, 2 digs and 2 blocks. Captain Zachary Doherty (Goderich) chipped in with 11 kills, 11 digs and 6 blocks while Graham favoured well in his return with 41 assists, 11 digs and 2 service aces. Libero Erich Woolley (New Dundee) had 15 digs and now leads the OUA in both digs (118 – 3rd in CIS) and digs per set (3.19).
Guelph standouts include Marc Wilson with 11 kills (.562) and 3 blocks while Patrick Strzalkowski had 10 kills and 6 digs. Kyle Richards had 30 assists and 9 digs in the loss.
Waterloo will now break for the holidays and return to action Friday, January 9 to take on the Toronto Varsity Blues at 6pm; a team they swept in straight sets early this season.
Source: Waterloo WarriorsSaturday, November 29
RMC @ Nipissing
Queen's @ Nipissing
While it was only a split, the final weekend of the semester for the Nipissing Lakers men's volleyball team went very well.
The Lakers played two very impressive matches, defeating RMC and losing to Queens in four, but competing with a top team.
After Saturday's match, the Lakers entered Sunday with a chance to sweep their first weekend of the season.
The teams split the first two sets – with Queens winning the first 25-23 and the Lakers taking set two 25-22.
Queens won the next two sets, but it was anything but smooth for the veteran squad.
The Lakers came up with some big plays, great digs, huge kills and impressive blocks as they hung tough the entire afternoon.
Cam Branch led the Lakers attack with 21 kills, as well as two blocks.
Lyndon Sonego had 11 kills, while Andy McWiggan added seven for Nipissing.
Despite a win-loss record they aren't thrilled about, the Lakers could easily be 5-5, maybe even better, with the way they played throughout the semester.
The team will regroup and hope to pick things up in the second semester, when they get back on the court in Januray.
Source: Nipissing Lakers
Queens 3 @ York 1
The York University Lions men's volleyball team lost 3-1 to the visiting Queen's Gaels at the Tait McKenzie Centre on Saturday (Nov. 29).
The Gaels won the first two sets by matching 25-21 scores. The Lions pulled one back at the third with a tight game at 25-23. The Gaels responded with an emphatic 25-15 win at the fourth set for a road win.
Ray Szeto (Sutton, Ont.) scored the opening point of the game with a deadly spike. However, the Gaels were able to take the early lead at 6-3 before the first timeout.
Gaels' Mike Tomlinson provided dangerous serves that momentarily stunned the Lions. Tomlinson ended the game with three service aces. The Gaels led 16-8 by the first set timeout.
Josh Henderson (Scarborough, Ont.) subbed in and contributed three points through two kills and a block. The Lions were outplayed as the Gaels retained their lead until the end of the set.
Szeto made an impressive save from a ball that was landing towards the bench. He played the ball back to the Lions' court and eventually gained a point through an attacking error by the Gaels at 6-4.
The Gaels were able to equalize at 8-8 and eventually took the lead at 16-12 before the timeout through a series of mistakes by the Lions. The visitors won the second set with an organized tactical play.
Rookie middle blocker Arthur Swarcz (Toronto) hit an outstanding spinning spike from a set by Nikola Sandic (Etobicoke, Ont.) at 3-2. Hasty kill attempts by the Gaels cost them the lead as Sandic made a service ace to give the Lions the lead at 13-10 before the timeout.
Both teams remained equally matched, but the Lions came out as winners of the set.
The Lions were outclassed by the Gaels as defensive errors caused the Lions to trail in the fourth.
After recording 13 kills, 10 digs and a service ace, Szeto subbed out for rookie outside hitter Tyler Covach (Kitchener, Ont.). Covach ended with two kills.
The Gaels' leading scorer was Philippe Goyer with 19 points, all on kills.
The Lions holds a record of 5-4 and stand at sixth place in the OUA standings with 10 points. They will face the RMC Paladins on Sunday (Nov. 30) at Tait McKenzie Centre beginning at 4pm.
Source: York Lions
Windsor 2 @ Ryerson 3 (25-13, 18-25, 17-25, 25-17, 15-11)
TORONTO – The Ryerson Rams men's volleyball team will heads into the winter break riding a two-game winning streak after defeating the Windsor Lancers 3-2 (25-13, 18-25, 17-25, 25-17, 15-11) on Saturday night at the Mattamy Athletic Centre.
Robert Wojcik (Whitby, Ont.) recorded a team-high 15 kills, while also adding a team-high 10 digs for Ryerson, who has won five of its last six matches. Lucas Coleman (Brooklin, Ont.) added 12 kills and Alex Dawson (Scarborough, Ont.) added 11 kills and a pair of aces.
The Rams also received contributions off the bench from setter Brett Whitley (Brighton, Ont.) and middle Nikola Brcic (Toronto).
Gabriel Burlacu (Tecumseh, Ont.) led Windsor with a match-high 25 kills, while Chad Hinchey Yellowknife, NT) added 13 kills.
Ryerson (8-3) jumped out to a 16-9 lead in the first set and never looked back, cruising to a 25-14 victory. Leading 16-13 in the second set, the Lancers (4-6) would go on a 9-5 run to win 25-18.
In the third set, Windsor jumped out to a commanding 13-3 lead and was able to hold off the Rams, winning 25-17. It would be Ryerson who would pull away in the fourth set following the technical timeout. With the scored 17-16, Ryerson took control by outscoring Windsor 8-1.
Ryerson jumped out to an 8-5 lead in the deciding set but the Lancers would claw back to tie it 10-10. The Rams scored five of the next six points highlighted by kills by Wojcik, Coleman and middle Marc Reardon.
The Rams will compete in the York Excalibur Classic January 3-5, before resuming OUA conference play on January 10 at Waterloo.
Source: Ryerson Rams
Western 3 @ Toronto 1 (22-25, 25-23, 25-18, 25-21)
The University of Toronto Varsity Blues men's volleyball team fell 3-1 (22-25, 25-23, 25-18, 25-21) to the Western Mustangs on Saturday night (Nov. 29) at Goldring Centre for High Performance Sport.
The Blues head into the December break with a 3-8 record in ninth place in the OUA standings.
Fifth-year veteran Dave Merritt led Toronto with 11 kills and six digs, while fellow veteran Jake Dysselhof had nine kills, three aces and five digs.
Nate Virgo notched six kills and six blocks, with Trevor Grant chipping in with four kills and five blocks on the night. Michael Denton recorded 36 assists and eight digs in the loss.
Western was led by Justin Scapinello's 15-kill performance. The OUA leading point-getter also had five aces and seven digs. Zeid Hamadeh tallied 10 kills and six digs in the win.
The Varsity Blues are back in action in the new year when they host the Waterloo Warriors on Friday, January 9 at Goldring Centre for High Performance Sport.
Source: Toronto Varsity Blues
McMaster 3 @ Guelph 0 (16-25, 20-25, 19-25)
Guelph, Ont. – In front of a packed house at the W.F. Mitchell Athletic Centre on Saturday night, the Gryphon men's volleyball team lost in straight sets to the No. 2 McMaster Marauders. Set scores were 16-25, 20-25, 19-25. With the loss, the Gryphons fall to 7-4 on the season while Mac sits atop the OUA standings at 9-1.
Fifth year captain Patrick Strzalkowski (St. Catherines, Ont.) led the way for the Gryphons with three service aces, a team-high six kills and 10.5 points. McMaster was led by some strong play in the middle from Jayson McCarthy (Oshawa, ON) while outside hitters Brandon Koppers (Georgetown, ON) and Danny Demyanenko (Toronto, ON) finished with 9 kills each.
After a 6-1 start to the season, the Gryphons have now lost three of their last four. They will be in action again on Janurary 10th, 2015 when they visit the Varsity Blues in Toronto. Game time is 6pm.
Source: Guelph Gryphons
