Photo credit Alistair Boulby

HAMILTON (CIS) – Playing with purpose, and showing newfound versatility on offence, the Laval Rouge et Or capped their tournament experience on a high note Saturday. The Rouge et Or continued their dominance of the UNB Varsity Reds to win their fourth match against the Reds this season, sweeping in straight sets and claiming fifth place at the 50th CIS Men's Volleyball Championship presented by Leggat Auto Group.

"We were much more enthusiastic today," said Laval head coach Pascal Clement. "We knew that UNB would come at us aggressively, because we beat them three times during the season and knew them well."

The coach placed the responsibility for the Rouge et Or's blistering offence on his CIS All-Rookie setter, Ethan Ellison, in the wake of the win.

"I think our setter did a great job of running the offence, and we did some scouting and wanted to get into the match by spreading the offence and moving UNB around a bit," said Clement.

Ellison finished Saturday's match with a total of 43 assists, guiding his team to a hitting percentage of 51.

"Our serve-receive lineup was allowing me to serve very well, because every time UNB served, they were putting that ball right where I needed it and we were able to finish consistently," said Ellison.

"Once the passing came up, our entire game lifted and built around that. Our block defence really elevated in the second and third sets."

Laval outside Vicente Parraguirre Villalobos led all hitters with 14 kills and 15 points, while teammates Olivier Jannini, Bruno Lortie and Hugo Leger also entered double digits in points.

Pascal McCarthy paced the Varsity Reds with 10 kills in a losing effort, while Atlantic University Sport (AUS) MVP Eivind Anderson led his team with 11 points, including nine kills.

The offences were both firing from the first serve on Saturday, with UNB's McCarthy leading the way with six kills and just one error in the opening set. Overall, the Reds hit 43 per cent, and would have been in great shape had the Rouge et Or not been in even finer form.

Laval hit a blistering 70 per cent as a team in the first, with the pair of Lortie and Leger each killing five of their six attempts for a rate of 83 per cent. Committing just one error as a group in the set, the Rouge et Or simply out-paced their opponents from AUS.

Warning signs were apparent for UNB head coach Dan McMorran after the opener, despite his team's high hitting clip in the set.

"I don't even think we passed particularly well in set number one," said McMorran. "We talked about how we were in it without really passing.

"It might have been a question in sets two and three of a few guys who played very well in a pair of five-set matches running out of gas. But we were off today, and it was hard to find some kind of rhythm."

In the second set, it was a pivotal six-point run from Laval that gained them separation just before the technical timeout, as McCarthy's error gave the Rouge et Or at 15-10 lead. Vastly improved blocking from Laval ground the UNB offence to a halt in the set, as the Reds efficiency dropped to zero, with just eight kills versus eight errors. In total, Laval had seven blocks in the second, and one of those — a double stuff from Laurent Mailhot and Ellison — helped push the Rouge et Or across the finish line at 25-16.

Now at full strength, and with their block continuing to slow the Reds, the Rouge et Or raced away with the third set. Laval hit 50 per cent as a team, and saw three different players, Vicente Parraguirre Villalobos, Lortie and Olivier Jannini, reach double digits in kills before the match's end.

A four-point run ended the afternoon and sealed fifth place for the Rouge et Or, as Jannini hammered down the final kill for 25-17.

STAT LEADERS

Laval
Kills: Vicente Ignacio Parraguirre Villalobos (14), Bruno Lortie (11)
Points: Vicente Ignacio Parraguirre Villalobos (15), Olivier Jannini (11.5)
Blocks: Laurent Mailhot (6.5)
Digs: Vicente Ignacio Parraguirre Villalobos (8)
Service aces: Ethan Ellison (1), Jean-Philippe Desjardins (1)

Player of the match: Bruno Lortie

UNB
Kills: Pascal McCarthy (10), Eivind Anderson (9)
Points: Eivind Anderson (11), Pascal McCarthy (10.5)
Blocks: Eivind Anderson (1)
Digs: Matthew Losier (7)
Service aces: Cody Timmons (2)

Player of the match: Ryan Colpitts

CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE & RESULTS

Thursday, March 10
13:00 Quarter-final #1: Trinity Western 3, Ryerson 1 (25-19, 25-22, 23-25, 26-24)
15:00 Quarter-final #2: Alberta 3, Laval 0 (25-15, 25-19, 25-19)
18:00 Quarter-final #3: Saskatchewan 3, UNB 2 (23-25, 25-20, 19-25, 25-20, 15-10)
20:00 Quarter-final #4: McMaster 3, Waterloo 0 (25-15, 25-15, 25-18)

Friday, March 11
13:00 Consolation #1: Laval 3, Ryerson 2 (22-25, 25-23, 23-25, 25-17 16-14)
15:00 Consolation #2: UNB 3, Waterloo 1 (23-25, 21-25, 25-18, 25-23, 15-10)
18:00 Semifinal #1: Trinity Western 3, Alberta 2 (18-25, 25-20, 25-19, 20-25, 15-11)
20:00 Semifinal #2: McMaster 3, Saskatchewan 0 (32-30, 26-24, 25-17)

Saturday, March 12
13:00 5th place: Laval 3, UNB 0 (25-22, 25-16, 25-17)
15:00 Bronze medal: Alberta vs. Saskatchewan (Cable 14 & www.CIS-SIC.tv)
18:00 Championship final: McMaster vs. Trinity Western (Cable 14 & www.CIS-SIC.tv) *

* Tape delayed to 22:00 on Cable 14.