Women's Volleyball
Defeating a top OCAA team on the road, in their home gym, is never an easy job. With their six-game win streak on the line, the Knights went out on the road Wednesday evening to take on the third ranked Sheridan Bruins.
Niagara won the first set rather easily 25-15 and then dropped consecutive sets 21-25. The Knights dug deep to rally and win the fourth set 27-25, forcing a decisive fifth set. In the fifth, Sheridan pulled away with a 15-6 win, snapping Niagara's six-game win streak.
In the end, the outstanding duo for Sheridan was too much for Niagara College. Fourth year right side Melissa Cappelletti (Cambridge) finished with a season high 28 points, while third year left side Jordie Bevan (Oakville) contributed with 17 points.
Niagara College was led by second year outside hitter Madison Morgan (Whitby) who had a team high 16 points. After not playing a lot the last couple of matches, Madison was called upon to help give the Knights a better matchup, and delivered a great performance. Third year middle blocker Nicole Schoonderwoerd (Tavistock) had 11 points with 12 digs, while Lucy McLay (Stratford) also had 11 points with seven digs.
Despite the loss, head coach Joey Martins remained optimistic and upbeat about his club and their performance so far this season. "We had a nice run of six straight matches and that adds enormous pressure to our program," said coach Martins. "6-1 on the season is still good and we are within a match of first place in the division. This is a key moment for our program this season."
The loss drops Niagara College to 6-1 but the Knights remain in second in the OCAA West. The Sheridan win keeps them in third but they improve to 6-2 on the season.
On Sunday, November 30, the Knights will host the top ranked team in the province, the Humber Hawks (7-0, 1st West). "I believe this [loss] will make us hungrier for our match on Sunday," added coach Martins. "We will regroup and our focus now is completely on Humber."
For updated standings, statistics, news and more please visit http://www.ocaa.com/sports/wvball/index
