After struggling out of the gate, the Niagara Knights men's volleyball program (5-4, 4th OCAA West) wrapped up the first half of the OCAA regular season with a weekend sweep. The Knights defeated the Boreal Viperes (0-9, 10th OCAA West) and Cambrian Golden Shield (1-8, 9th OCAA West) on back-to-back days.

The Knights opened the weekend with a 3-0 (25-14, 25-9, 25-12) victory over the visiting Viperes. Tristan Swinden (Whitby) and Marcus Francis (Pickering) led the way for Niagara, recording 10 points apiece. Swinden had a hitting efficiency of .889 on the strength of eight kills on nine attempts. 

On Sunday the Knights continued their winning ways against Cambrian, defeating the Golden Shield 3-0 (26-24, 25-12, 25-16). Marcus Francis once again paced the Knights, contributed 16 points by way of 14 kills and two service aces. Andrew Vandenburg (St. Catharines) was the other Knight to reach double digits with 10 points. 

After starting the season with a 2-4 record, Niagara has rallied to win three straight heading into the holiday break. "It is always nice to have some positive momentum going into a few weeks off," said Head Coach Nathan Groenveld. "We are going to evaluate the entire first half, and put some plans in place for the second semester."

Groenveld also stressed the importance to learn and grow throughout the process. "We have some obvious things in our game that need improvement," added Groenveld. "That being said, this group has been excited all season to learn and get better."

The second half of the OCAA regular season will kick off on January 14th and 15th for the Knights. Niagara will head to Sudbury to take on Cambrian and Boreal in a weekend doubleheader. With the standings currently bunched from sports three to eight, every game down the stretch will matter, and with momentum on their side the Knights will be looking to take advantage.