QUARTER FINAL #1 CIS men’s volleyball championship: No. 2 Dalhousie fends off No. 7 York’s comeback bid
SASKATOON (CIS) – The No. 2 seeded Dalhousie University Tigers fended off a comeback bid from the No. 7 seeded York University Lions with a 3-2 (25-23, 25-19, 25-27, 16-25, 15-13) win in the first quarter-final of the 2015 CIS Men’s Volleyball Championship Thursday afternoon.
Team Stats
Dalhousie
| Game Statistics | York | Dalhousie |
|---|---|---|
| Hitting % | .276 | .285 |
| Blocks | 11.0 | 9.0 |
| Digs | 44 | 34 |
| Aces | 6 | 4 |
Courtesy of Matt Packwood, Brandon University Sports Information / Photo credit Josh Schaefer Photography
SASKATOON (CIS) – The No. 2 seeded Dalhousie University Tigers fended off a comeback bid from the No. 7 seeded York University Lions with a 3-2 (25-23, 25-19, 25-27, 16-25, 15-13) win in the first quarter-final of the 2015 CIS Men’s Volleyball Championship Thursday afternoon.
Dalhousie seemed to be in control throughout the first two sets,
but York refused to go away and proved they deserved to be at the
national tournament.
The first set saw the two teams trading blows, the largest lead of
the set being just three points. The Tigers extended their lead to
23-20, before an Alexander Dempsey kill gave Dalhousie the first
set 25-23.
York opened the second set with three straight points before
Dalhousie battled back to lead the set at 8-7. The Tigers would
slowly build lead to 22-17 when York called a second time-out, but
it was a futile effort as Dalhousie took the set 25-19 to take a
2-0 match lead.
The third set featured no dramatic leads early, but an incredibly
dramatic end. Dalhousie worked to a 23-19 lead before York battled
back. Fifth-year outside hitter Ray Szeto’s back row attack
tied the set at 24-24 before a block by Nikola Sandich gave the
Lions a 25-24 lead. The two teams would trade points before an
attack by Dalhousie sailed just past the end line. The line judge
ruled the ball in before the umpire over-turned the call, giving
York a 27-25 third set victory, effectively keeping their hopes
alive.
Jumping to an early lead York, leading by as much as ten points
before taking the set 25-16.
A big block by Matthew Donovan gave Dalhousie an 8-5 lead in fifth
set, and seemed to be the turning point, but York refused to go
away, battling back to a 12-12 tie. Dalhousie found a way to close
out the match despite a last ditch effort from the Lions. The
Tigers took the final set 15-13.
Tigers head coach Dan Ota was pleased with his team’s
tournament starting performance, despite not closing the match when
they had the opportunity.
“York really fought back hard, with their backs against the
wall in the third set and they really deserve a lot of
credit,” says Ota. “Our guys are a lot more comfortable
playing in these tight situations, so we knew what we had to do. We
had to get on and play that fifth set, so I’m really happy
with how our guys bounced back.”
Three Tigers finished in double-digit kills, led by Kristen
O’Brien’s team-high 17 kills. Alex Dempsey put up 14
kills while Bryan Duquette contributed 13 kills. O’Brien was
named Dalhousie’s player of the match for his efforts.
Fourth-year setter Jonathan Macdonald dished 45 assists, while
second-year libero Adam Sandeson finished with a team-high 11
digs.
York was paced by Szeto’s match-high 20 kills. The fifth-year
All-Canadian kept the Lions alive, playing in his final CIS season.
CIS Rookie of the Year Josh Henderson put up 12 kills, while Nikola
Sandic had a match-high 46 assists.
“It was a hard fought battle,” said York Lions coach
Mike Chumbley. “Dalhousie came out guns blazing and we had a
bit of first time jitters that got to us off the hop. As we got
more comfortable with the court and surroundings, we felt we had a
real opportunity to extend the match and even win the fifth set. We
had two swings that went a bit to far outside the court.
We’ll go back review the video, learn from this, reset
for tomorrow and for down the road.”
The Tigers move to the semifinal Saturday against the Alberta
Golden Bears, while York drops to the consolation semifinal against
the Waterloo Warriors.
STAT LEADERS
York
Kills: Ryan Szeto (20), Josh Henderson (12)
Points: Ray Szeto (21), Josh Henderson (16.5)
Blocks: Josh Henderson (5)
Digs: Josh Henderson (16)
Service aces: Josh Henderson, Arthur Swarcz (2)
Player of the match: Ray Szeto
Dalhousie
Kills: Kristen O’Brien (17), Alex Dempsey (14)
Points: Kristen O’Brien (18.5)
Blocks: Connor Maessen (5)
Digs: Adam Sanderson (16)
Service aces: Bryan Duquette (2)
Player of the match: Kristen O’Brien
CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE & RESULTS (all times CENTRAL TIME)
Thursday, February 26
13:00 Quarter-final #1: Dalhousie 3, York 2 (25-23, 25-19, 25-27,
16-25, 15-13)
15:00 Quarter-final #2: No. 6 Waterloo vs. No. 3 Alberta (www.CIS-SIC.tv)
18:00 Quarter-final #3: No. 5 Trinity Western vs. No. 4 Laval (www.CIS-SIC.tv)
20:00 Quarter-final #4: No 8 Saskatchewan vs. No. 1 McMaster (www.CIS-SIC.tv)
Friday, February 27
13:00 Consolation #1: No. 7 York vs. No. 6 Waterloo (www.CIS-SIC.tv)
15:00 Consolation #2: Loser QF #3 vs. Loser QF #4 (www.CIS-SIC.tv)
18:00 Semifinal #1: No. 3 Alberta vs. No. 2 Dalhousie (www.CIS-SIC.tv)
20:00 Semifinal #2: Winner QF #3 vs. Winner QF #4 (www.CIS-SIC.tv)
Saturday, February 28
14:00 5th place (www.CIS-SIC.tv)
16:00 Bronze medal (www.CIS-SIC.tv)
19:00 Championship final (www.CIS-SIC.tv)