OUA Final: Varsity Blues claim championship

Photo credit by Michael P. Hall

HAMILTON, Ont. - In the 2007-2008 OUA championship final it was the McMaster Marauders that defeated the Toronto Varsity Blues on Toronto's home floor. The Blues returned the favour Saturday night at McMaster's Burridge Gym as they swept the OUA final 3-0 (25-20, 25-23, 25-19) to secure the 2009-2010 Ontario University Athletics (OUA) women's volleyball championship title and the conference bid to the 2009-2010 Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) championship.

The OUA Final Four is presented by Mikasa and AMJ Campbell Van Lines.

The large and noisy home crowd was it in it from the opening serve, but the Blues seemed unaffected by the tough road environment. Both teams went right at each other to start the opening set with most of the points coming off extended rallies. Karlee Diesing (Coquitlam, B.C) scored four of Toronto's first eight points to give them the slight 8-7 lead at the first technical timeout. Local product Heather Bansley (Waterdown, Ont.) helped Toronto build up a 12-9 advantage and her kill sent the teams to the second technical timeout with Toronto ahead by their biggest margin of the set, 16-11. McMaster's Shannon McRobert (Whitby, Ont.) responded providing back-to-back blocks to cut the Toronto lead to four, 18-14. The teams traded points until a McRobert kill made it a three-point margin in favour of Toronto, 20-17. That was as close as the No. 10 nationally-ranked Marauders would get in the set with Bansley and Kristina Valjas (Toronto) closing it out with kills. Diesing had eight of her match high 16 kills in the opening set.

The second set would prove to be the closest of the match despite Toronto building a large lead. Kathleen Mahannah (North Vancouver, B.C.) served Toronto to their first five points and a Valjas kill made it 6-0 in favour of the Blues. Kaila Janssen (Oshawa, Ont.) got the Marauders on the board with a kill and that sparked the offence. Coming out of the first technical timeout down 8-5, some keying blocking and a kill from Larissa Puhach (Burlington, Ont.) tied the set at 8-8. Bansley responded with back-to-back kills to re-establish the Toronto lead. The Blues would head to the second technical timeout up two, 16-14. Out of the timeout the Marauders keep edging closer to tying the contest until finally notching things at 19-19. A McRobert kill gave the Marauders their first lead of the set, 20-19, and the Burridge Gym went crazy. To their credit the Blues did not buckle. A Rebecca Crosier (Ottawa) kill tied things at 21-21 and a Mahannah block gave the Blues a 23-21 lead. The Marauders would tie it again at 23-23, but Crosier won a free ball to give the Blues set point. A Marauder attack went long on set point giving Toronto the set.

Down 2-0 in the match, McMaster scored first, and a huge block on a free ball at the net by McRobert gave the Marauders a 2-0 lead. McMaster started to build and early lead, but it was Toronto that was ahead 8-6 by the first technical timeout. As was the case in the first two sets, the teams exchanged points for much of the set until a Valjas attack found the line to give Toronto a 16-14 lead at the second technical timeout. Out of the timeout a Sarah Kieran (Hamilton, Ont.) kill made it 16-15 and she would team up with Holt on a block that tied things at 17-17. That would be as close as the Marauders would get as Diesing would score four of Toronto's remaining eight points, including match point, to secure the set and the match.

OUA East liberio of the year Michelle Wood from Toronto was selected as the Mikasa player of the match/championship match MVP. She had 18 digs and contributed three assists for the Blues in the win. Diesing was a force on offence for the Blues contributing 16 points, all on kills. Bansley also scored in double figures with 12 points on 10 kills, and two aces. She also dug 19 balls on defence. Valjas rounded out the top scorers for Toronto with 10 points on nine kills, two blocks assists adding 11 digs.

Fifth-year senior setter Jenn Holt (Hamilton, Ont.) was the McMaster Mikasa player of the match contributing 25 assists, 12 digs, and five block assists. Kiernan (eight kills, three block assists) and McRobert (seven kills, one solo block, three block assists) each contributed nine points to lead the McMaster scoring. Janssen (six kills) and Puhach (six kills, 10 digs, one block assist) each added six points apiece.

With the win Toronto advances to the CIS championship hosted by the University of Alberta in Edmonton from March 5-7.

With the score tied 22-22 in the third set, Western fifth-year senior Jacqueline Robinson (Vancouver) recorded back-to-back kills to lead the Mustangs to victory in the bronze medal match against the Queen's Gaels.

Robinson was named the Mizuno player of the game for the Mustangs. She finished the game with eight kills and seven digs.

Western (14-5 in the regular season) won the match in straight sets 3-0 (25-16, 25-13, 25-22) turning the tables on Queen's (13-6 in conference play) who defeated the Mustangs 3-0 in early February.

In the first set, Western took an 8-6 advantage into the technical time-out. The Mustangs widened the gap to 11-6 as Robinson and fourth-year middle Sara Farrell (London, Ont.) each recorded kills and Queen's committed a ball handling error. With the score 19-12 in favour of the Mustangs, Western rhymed off six consecutive points including kills by Farrell, Robinson and fourth-year kinesiology major Sarah Lowry (Calgary). Western second-year outside hitter Caleigh Whitaker (Sharon, Ont.) closed out the set with a kill for Western.

In set two, Western went on a 5-0 run to lead Queen's 8-3 with two kills from Lowry, a pair of kills from Farrell, a combination block by Robinson and Farell, and a block by their setter, Jenna Thomson (St. Marys, Ont.). Queen's closed the gap to three, but were no better off as Western closed out the set 25-13.
   
Third-year outside hitter and OUA West all-star Elyssa Heller (Highland Park, Ill.) was named Mikasa player of the game for Queen's. Heller recorded six kills and 12 digs for the Gaels.

Queen's second-year outside hitter and OUA East all-star Natalie Gray (Oshawa, Ont.) had six kills and a team-high 14 digs.  Third-year middle Colleen Ogilvie (Calgary) added six kills for the Gaels.

The fourth-place finish was Queen's first appearance in the OUA Final Four tournament since the 2004 season when they captured the bronze medal. The Gaels have no fourth or fifth-year players on their roster.

Western fourth-year setter and OUA West all-star Thomson had a game-high of 25 assists. First-year social science major and OUA West libero of the year, Claire Morrow (London, Ont.) had a game-high of 16 digs. OUA West second-team all-star Whitaker recorded a game-high of 12 kills for Western. OUA West second-team all-star Lowry added seven kills for the Mustangs.

Courtesy of McMaster University Department of Athletics & Recreation

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