Brock’s season comes to a disappointing end in a defeat to McMaster in the OUA Championship.
The Badgers women’s volleyball team were looking to win their fourth consecutive Quigley Cup title and second straight against the Marauders but fell short, losing 3-0 to McMaster on March 7 at the Bob Davis Gymnasium.
Outside hitter Emily Foest, who was named an OUA Third-Team All-Star this past week, led Brock with 9.5 points coming from eight kills, one solo block and one block assist. Setter Mackenna Knox, selected to the OUA Second-Team, registered a game-high 28 assists as well as a team-high 12 digs in the contest.
In the opening set, the Badgers jumped to the early 4-1 lead after a string of errors by McMaster as well as an ace from Charlotte Ross, who was named to the OUA All-Rookie Team, gave the home side the quick advantage.
However, errors were the theme of the first set, as costly mistakes by the Badgers, who made 12 attacking errors in the set — by far the most by either team in a set all match — allowed the Marauders to level the game at 15.
The teams then traded jabs, resulting in a 22-22 deadlock before a trio of McMaster blocks, a category they dominated with 13 blocks in the game compared to Brock’s four, gave the visitors the first set victory, 25-22.
The momentum from the opening set win carried into the second set as the Marauders jumped to a 3-0 lead and never looked back.
An early timeout by the Badgers was unable to cease the Marauders’ momentum as McMaster held their lead for the entirety of the set, a rare occurrence in OUA women’s volleyball.
Despite a statistically strong attacking set by Brock, hitting .324 per cent, the Marauders doubled their advantage with a 25-19 set two win.
The third set featured the same domination from the McMaster side as they once again leaped to a 5-2 advantage that grew to 11-6, forcing Brock to call another early timeout.
However, the timeout sprung the home side as the Badgers rallied four straight points, three of which were kills from Foest and OUA First-Team All-Star Sadie Dick, as Brock found themselves back in the set and down only two, 14-12.
But that was the closest the Badgers came in the set, as another error and a pair of McMaster aces — another category the Marauders won with seven aces in contrast to Brock’s four — restored momentum into the McMaster side looking for revenge after their loss to the Badgers in last season’s final.
With the Marauders holding match point, they got their vengeance when a Sullie Sundara smash, who led all players with a game-high 15 kills, gave McMaster the 3-0 (25-22, 25-19, 25-18) victory to win the OUA Championship.
For the Badgers, the loss ends another hard-fought season for the team. Brock qualified for their fifth straight provincial final and had a 16-4 regular season record, which placed them second of 15 teams in the OUA standings.
For more information about the Brock Badgers women’s volleyball team, visit gobadgers.ca.