The York University Lions women's volleyball team played a hard-fought match against the undefeated and No. 2 nationally-ranked Toronto Varsity Blues, stealing the third set but ultimately falling in four at the Tait McKenzie Centre on Sunday afternoon.
 
The match represents only the fourth time in 15 matches the Blues have dropped a set this season, and they remain undefeated at 15-0 with the win. The Lions slipped to 7-8 and are now tied with the Queen's Gaels and Nipissing Lakers for third in the OUA East standings.
 
The opening set of Sunday's match would see a powerful hitting Varsity Blues squad take an early lead. Toronto's early jump had the Lions playing catch-up, and they were not able to close the gap before falling 25-17.
 
Entering the second set of the match, the Lions would look to neutralize the game and tie the game. An early jump by the high-flying attack and brick wall blockers led the Lions to a 7-1 lead. From this point forward, however, Toronto would slowly make their way back into the picture. Some miscommunication on the Lions' side of the court would result in relatively free points and the lead for the Blues. The Blues would continue to dominate after they claimed their 16-15 lead all the way until they won the set by a score of 25-18.
 
Facing elimination, the Lions took a page out of their own book. Just as in their previous game against the Brock Badgers, York played their best volleyball. Early in the set Celeste Witzell (Kitchener, Ont.) did it all. Her violent swat and uncanny ability to block Toronto's shots gave the Lions another early lead. From this point forward a battle would ensue, pushing the game past the 25-point mark. The Lions would go back and forth either one point away from defeat or one point away from victory. It was not until the score sat at 26-25 that the Lions' Melissa Monkhouse (Guelph, Ont.) blasted a well-set ball to the far corner of Toronto's side. This would mark the winning point for the set and would put the Lions back in contention trailing 2-1.
 
Heading into another set while on the ropes, the Lions would need more of the magic they possessed in the previous bout but it was not to be. Toronto took very little time to hit stride in this final set, and their powerful hitting made the difference with the Lions being defeated by a score of 25-15.
 
Despite the loss, the Lions displayed their ability to play with one of the country's top contenders. Their next game will take place on Saturday when they travel to Kingston, Ont., to take on the Queen's Gaels.