January 17th, 2020…WELLAND – The Niagara College Knights women's volleyball team played to an exciting five set finish in last night's thriller against the visiting Mohawk Mountaineers.
The Knights 3-2 victory (25-18, 23-25, 19-25, 25-16, 15-12) propelled them to 7-4 in the standings, handing the third place West Division Mountaineers ( 6-4) their first lost since November 30th.
Head coach Steve Dow continues to be impressed by his team's determination this season.
"I am really proud of the resiliency that this group continues to show," said Dow. "We continue to fight when things are not going the way we plan them. With that being said, I think we need to do a better job focusing on the little things that will sustain a higher set of standards for our group. We are doing a great job attacking from the outside but we will continue to try and do a better job getting our middles involved in the offence moving forward. We will enjoy a quiet weekend and get ready for Conestoga next week."
The Knights were led by captain Natasha Desjardins with a kill percentage of .375 and 22 points, followed by first-year Kristen Oudman with 16 points.
"All game we saw flashes of brilliance and we want to turn those flashes into longer stretches. I feel like every week we can high-lite the offensive brilliance of Natasha Desjardins who scored a match high 22 points (18K, 4BS), but I have been really impressed with our first year left side Kristen Oudmen who has quietly put up strong numbers over the last two games."
The Knights currently sit fifth in the Ontario Colleges Athletic Association West division with their 7-4 record, with just eight games remaining in the regular season. Niagara will hit the road Wednesday Jan 22nd to Conestoga (2-9) before returning home to face the second place Humber Hawks (9-2) on Thursday Jan 30th.
For full OCAA stats and standings, please visit www.occaa.com
