The York University Lions men's volleyball team lost its hold on sole possession of first place in the OUA East on Sunday afternoon after a 3-1 loss to the Western Mustangs in London, Ont.
 
The Lions now have a 9-4 record and dropped into a tie with the Ryerson Rams, who have the same mark. The Mustangs are also on a similar pace and sit in second place in the OUA West with a 9-2 record.
 
The first set was a back and forth affair in which neither team was able to establish much momentum. The Mustangs took a four-point lead at 12-8, but the Lions clawed their way back and pulled ahead themselves, at 20-18. With the Lions holding set point at 25-24, the Mustangs rallied off three straight points to win the set 26-24.
 
The second set also went back and forth at the beginning and the two teams were tied at 13-13. But the Mustangs began to pull away after that and claimed it 25-19 for a 2-0 match lead.
 
The Lions wasted little time taking control of the third set, and a run of strong serves by Spencer Dakin Kuiper gave the Lions a 15-7 lead. The Mustangs climbed all the way back to level the set at 23-23, but this time the Lions made use of their match point and won the set 26-24 to extend the match.
 
Unfortunately, the momentum generated the third set was not carried over into the fourth and the Mustangs rolled, taking it 25-18 to win the match.
 
Team scoring leader Andrew Shotbolt was again impressive despite the defeat, putting up 19.5 points and 12 digs. Setter Logan Mend led the way with 47 assists and added 4.5 points and five digs.
 
Western was led by Bryn Ramsay and Evan Cranshaw, who finished with 18 and 15.5 points, respectively. They both had 15 kills, and Ramsay also added two blocks and one service ace.
 
The Lions will be off next weekend and will return to action on Friday, Feb. 9 when they welcome the Brock Badgers to the Tait McKenzie Centre. The match will begin at 8pm.