The York University Lions women's volleyball team won an absolute thriller on Saturday afternoon, coming back from two sets down to defeat the visiting Queen's Gaels 3-2 in an important OUA East match at the Tait McKenzie Centre.
The win helped the Lions keep pace in the extremely tight OUA East Division, where four teams are tied for second place with six wins. The Lions improved to 6-2 with the victory, while the Gaels dropped to 6-3.
The match did not begin the way the Lions would have hoped. In the first set, the Gaels raced out to an 8-2 lead and, while the Lions were able to cut the deficit to one at 20-19, they were never able to level the score and fell 25-22.
The second set began in similar fashion, with the visitors again building a 7-2 lead early. The Lions got it to 9-8, but then the Gaels scored eight straight points to take a commanding 17-8 lead that eventually became a 25-20 win and a 2-0 advantage.
The tides turned quickly in the third set and this time it was the Lions who pulled ahead. Up by as much as six, the Lions stayed ahead down the stretch and took the set 25-21. The fourth set was a much tighter affair, with neither team able to stretch the advantage to more than four points. Tied 22-22 late, the Lions won three straight points to take the set 25-22 and send the match to a fifth.
The Lions won the first three points of the final frame and didn't look back, winning 15-12 to complete the comeback.
Outside hitter
Melissa Smillie was tremendous throughout the match, finishing with a game-high 20.5 points that included 19 kills, and she also had 10 digs.
Chiara Da Silva put up 46 assists to go along with 6.5 points and five digs, and
Sabah Kalim led the Lions with 12 digs.
The Gaels' leading scorer was Julia Wiercigroch with 20 points on 17 kills, one service ace and four assisted blocks.
The Lions have now won four straight matches and will look to add to the streak on Sunday afternoon when they return to the Tait McKenzie Centre for a match against the RMC Paladins. First serve is set for 2pm.
