The 5-5 Niagara College Women's Volleyball Program kicked on the second half of the regular season with a come-from-behind five-set victory over the 3-7 Conestoga Condors. The set scores were 24-26, 17-25, 25-20, 25-16, 15-8.
With the team still adjusting to recent personnel and position changes Niagara Head Coach Joey Martins felt his team "started off very sluggish with no energy." The Knights dropped the first two sets and trailed 16-12 in the third set before finding their groove.
The Knights rebounded in the second half of the third set led by the play of first-year setter Madelaine Busby who came off the bench and sparked the team. Coach Martins felt that Busby "changed the flow of the game, she made some unreal plays, and set the players that needed to be set to get us our points.
The Knights ended up winning the third set 25-20.
Sets four and five were dominated by Niagara, anchored by the play of third year outside hitter Jenna Bray. The Burlington, Ontario native and Police Foundations student led all scorers in the match recording 15 kills. Bray also added two service aces and 12 digs.
Coach Martins felt optimistic about his team's performance noting that "Although it was not a convincing win, we are still trying to work with our players in new positions. Two of which were top scorers in the match."
Over the Holiday break Coach Martins made the decision to switch third year outside hitter Lindsay Murray's and first year middle Alex Botelho's positions. Martins feels the decision is "best for the team moving forward, as (Botelho) will be a dominant outside hitter in the future, and will be with the program for two more years."
Both Botelho and Murray had strong games in their new positions for the Knights. Botelho finished the match with 11 kills and 11 digs, while the veteran Murray adjusted well, finishing with nine kills, a service ace, a block, and three digs.
The Knights will return to the court on Saturday January 12th at 1:00 pm when the team hosts the Sheridan Bruins (4-5). All Niagara College Varsity Athletics feature free admission, and for those unable to be in attendance, are live broadcasted on www.sportslive.ca.
