Thursday, November 18th will see two of the top women's volleyball programs in Ontario square off in a battle for top-spot in the OCAA West Division. The 5-1 Niagara Knights will hit the road to face the undefeated Humber Hawks (5-0).
The Hawks are the defending OCAA Champions and have not lost a match since the 2010-11 season. The Knights however have played their opponents tough over the last two seasons pushing the Hawks to the brink during a five-set marathon in 2013-14, and battling to a pair of hard fought 3-1 losses in 2014-15.
The game also features a matchup of two of the top players in the OCAA. Last season's OCAA player of the year Thalia Hanniman is making a case to repeat as the OCAA's top player. The fifth-year Hawk is averaging an impressive 3.3 kills-per-set from the outside hitter position. The Knights will counter with a dominant all-around presence of their own in six-foot-one middle blocker Devon Lowes (Oakville). Lowes leads the OCAA in block-per-set with 1.21, and will look to disrupt the offensive rhythm of Hanniman all match. Lowes is averaging a total of 3.5 points-per-set, third best in the West Division.
"This is shaping up to be a very intense match" said Niagara College women's volleyball head coach Joey Martins. "Humber is the class of the OCAA and has been for some time, but we have a very talented roster and feel like we can compete with anyone in the country."
First-serve for Thursday's matchup is set for 6:00pm in Etobicoke. The match will be livestreamed via https://www.youtube.com/user/hawksrock121/live
