Coming off a massive upset over the top ranked Humber Hawks, the Niagara College men's volleyball (5-4, 6th West) program travelled to London to face the streaking Fanshawe Falcons (6-3, 4th West).
The Falcons started the first set on a high note, taking a quick 5-1 lead and despite the Knights best efforts, the Falcons continued to dominate, leading by as many as eleven, 22-11. A service error by Niagara finished the set 25-16 for the Falcons.
The second set was much closer but with the scored tied at 11, Niagara was able to pull ahead scoring four straight points. The Knights maintained their four point lead up until 21-17 when Fanshawe made a push. After a pair of errors by the Knights, Fanshawe tied the game at 22 before Niagara recovered and went on to win the set 25-22.
The third set saw the Knights trail 23-24, continually staying close and within striking distance. Unfortunately Niagara would lose the set and trail 2-1. The fourth set was not much different as Fanshawe pulled away with an earlier ten point lead. Again, the Knights rallied with a late run but ended up losing the set 21-25.
Niagara's inabilities to generate points combined with errors were major factors contributed to their loss. "As a group we had 33 kills and 31 errors, all on 148 total swings," said head coach Nathan Groenveld. "Fanshawe is a very disciplined team and they brought a lot of defensive pressure, making us play some longer rallies. Most of those rallies ended in error swings from us."
Fifth year outside hitter Aaron Vanderlugt (Burlington) had a game high 11 kills on 27 attacks. Reigning Niagara College Male Athlete of the Week Steve Stone (St. Catharines) had a game high 38 assists while Jeff Scott (Georgetown) led the Knights with three service aces.
Bailey Cochrane (Barrie) played extremely well in the loss as he passed at a very high level and accumulated 16 digs. "Bailey has been great for us all year," added coach Groenveld. "He is a second year guy who has been calm and calculating with his play, while making those around him better by passing and digging very well for us."
Next action for Niagara College will be in the Knights Invitational tournament played January 2-3. The OCAA regular season resumes January 7 when the Knights travel to Humber College.
