The Brock Badgers’ men’s volleyball team lost 3-2 in heartbreaking fashion to the Guelph Gryphons, finishing fourth in the OUA and one win shy of advancing to the U SPORTS National Championships.
Devin Cooney, OUA Second-Team All-Star, led the team with 18 kills while Grant Reddon – the OUA’s regular season leader in assists per set – recorded a team-high 51 assists in the match.
Reddon was influential early, registering kills on six of Brock’s first eight points leading to the 8-7 lead. However, the Gryphons, led by Jonathan Pickett’s seven kills in the set and a superb attacking percentage of .625, responded by going on an 18-7 run to win the first set 25-15.
In the second set, the Badgers were on the front foot jumping to a 9-5 advantage after a trio of Guelph attacking errors forced the visitors to call their first timeout. After the Badgers extended their lead to six, 15-9, the visitors went on a 5-1 run to cut Brock’s lead to two, forcing a Badgers’ timeout.
After the timeout, the teams traded points until the Gryphons took the lead, 24-22.
Facing a pair of set points, kills by Kylar Code and Eric Scott levelled the set at 24 before a Guelph attacking error – one of their nine in the set – gave the Badgers set point of their own.
However on set point, Pickett smashed a kill, negating the set point which started a marathon back-and-forth end to the set. With the set tied at 33, Guelph’s Alexander Odle and Pickett registered two of Guelph’s 26 kills in the set – the most of either team in any set – to win set two 35-33 and take a commanding 2-0 lead, one set away from booking their ticket to Kingston for the National Championships.
With their sights set on nationals, the Gryphons jumped to a 4-1 and 12-9 lead in the third, but the Badgers swiftly responded in authoritative fashion. The Badgers scored 16 of the next 18 points, including nine points in a row, to win the set 25-14, jubilating the Bob Davis Gymnasium.
The Badgers continued their momentum in the fourth going on a 5-1 run early to take the lead and gain control of the set. The Badgers extended their lead to 22-14, three points away from forcing a fifth set, but the Gryphons had other ideas.
A pair of Guelph kills and two of Brock’s eight attacking errors in the set, cut the lead to four, forcing a timeout from Brock coach Ian Eibbitt.
Eibbitt’s timeout was beneficial as the Badgers reclaimed control and won the set 25-18, after a Cooney kill and back-to-back Guelph attacking errors levelled the match at two sets apiece.
In the fifth and decisive set, the Gryphons once again were on fire early, going up 4-1 and 6-2. A Guelph attacking error and a kill by Jacob Ferland cut the deficit in half before the Gryphons rallied for three consecutive points, taking a 9-4 lead.
The Gryphons remained in control for the duration of the set, winning 15-11, eliminating the Badgers from advancing to the National Championships.
For more information on the Brock Badgers’ men’s volleyball team, head to gobadgers.ca.
