February 8, 2025
OSHAWA, ON: The 5 th place Niagara Knights men's volleyball team (9-9) took a drive
across Highway 401 to play in the qualifying playoff game against the OCAA East's 4 th
seeded Durham Lords (11-7). Taking the match in straight sets, the Knights won 3-0
with set scores of 25-19, 25-20 and 25-23.
The Knights came out with a burst of energy and shocked the Lords, taking an early set
lead and growing the lead to as many as 9 points throughout the 1 st set. Coming out of
the break, the Knights looked to continue their aggressive ways and keep the pressure
on the Lords. This pressure was noticeable throughout the 2 nd set as the Knights kept
the Lords on their heels and didn't give them a chance to catch their breath. Moving
into the 3 rd set, the Lords mustered up all that they could but could not break down the
Knights' defense and ultimately lost the match in straight sets.
Wizdom Smith, the 1 st year opposite from Winnipeg, Manitoba, led the Knights in
scoring with 12 points on 11 kills and also contributed 1 block and an assist. Matthew
Perron, the 2 nd year setter hailing from Hamilton, Ontario, controlled the Knights' offense
and led the team with 31 assists, 6 points on 2 kills, 2 digs, 2 blocks and 2 service aces.
Rowan Redekop and Liam Marchetti, middle blockers for the Knights, combined for 19
points on 14 kills, 3 blocks, 2 digs and 2 service aces.
Head coach of the Knights, Steve Stone, mentioned that this match against Durham
"was a complete team win and maximum effort." Stone continued to comment that "the
guys came ready to play and put a big emphasis on ball control and limiting our errors.
The middles were super-efficient attacking and that allowed everyone else to get a lot of
clean looks."
The Knights now look towards their quarter-final playoff game when they travel to
Humber to take on the OCAA West 1 st place Hawks (16-2). The match is scheduled for
Saturday, February 15 th at 3:00pm. If you can't travel to make it to the game in person,
be sure to catch all the action live on YouTube as your Knights continue their journey to
the OCAA Championships.
For more information on the Knights' teams, please visit us at www.goknights.ca.