Knights vs. Hawks
Sunday afternoon had the Niagara College women's volleyball (6-2, 2nd West) program hosting the fourth ranked team in the country. The Humber Hawks (8-0, 1st West) are the seven-time defending provincial champions and winners of 74 consecutive OCAA regular and post-season matches.
In front of their largest home crowd of the season, the Knights started the match off slow, dropping the first set 15-25. Shaking off the nerves and fighting through the pressure, Niagara began to look more like themselves as the match progressed.
After losing a tight second set 20-25, Niagara dug deep to win set three 25-22. The Knights looked like they regained their confidence, showcasing why they are one of the best programs in the country. Two quick service aces by Lucy McLay (Stratford) to open the fourth set helped Niagara to a 10-1 advantage. Unfortunately for the Knights, the experienced Hawks slowly chipped away at the score to win the set and the match, 3-1.
Despite the loss, head coach Joey Martins believes plenty of positives can be taken away from this game. "I felt like this was a great match for both us and them," coach Martins said. "We are still growing and continuously getting better, so we will be excited to play them again."
Top scorers for Niagara were Lucy McLay with 13 points and seven digs, Alexandria Botelho (Stoney Creek) with 12 points and six digs, and Nicole Schoonderwoerd (Tavistock) had ten points along with ten digs.
Humber was led offensively by Thalia Hanniman (Pembroke) with 17 kills and Brittany Vanderlaan (Stoney Creek) had a game high 36 assists.
Up next for the Knights will be a road game against the Fanshawe Falcons (3-5, 7th West) on December 4. This will be their last regular season game before the break.
