By Allan April / HALIFAX
The Saint Mary’s Huskies women’s volleyball team remain atop the AUS standings with a 8-1 record, after going 2-1 this weekend at the AUS League Tournament hosted by the Dalhousie Tigers.
The Huskies first matchup of the weekend was a showdown against the Acadia Axewomen, who came into the tournament second in the conference with a 4-1 record.
The Axewomen got off to a good start, winning the first set 26-24, led by some stellar play by fourth year outside hitter Taylor Collombin who posted seven kills in the first set.
But the Huskies bounced back, winning the second set 25-22, third set 25-22, and fourth set 25-16 to take the match three sets to one.
Huskies outside hitter Anica Jestratijevic (Arandjelovac, Serbia) was named Subway AUS player of the game with 12 kills and 17 digs. Second year outside hitter Megan Bruhm (Hubley, N.S.) added 12 kills and an ace, and fourth year middle Mariama Syll (Charters Settlement, N.B.) contributed 7 kills, 2.5 blocks and an ace.
On Saturday, the Huskies went up against the Université de Moncton Aigles Bleus.
It was a tightly contested match, with the Huskies winning the first two sets 25-22 and 25-19, before a comeback third set saw the Huskies erase a 16-12 lead Aigles Bleus lead and win the set 26-24.
Huskies middle Mariama Syll was named Subway AUS player of the game with 5 kills and 2 blocks. Outside hitter Olivia Bell (Lahave, N.S.) posted 12 kills and 1.5 blocks, and setter Jakobie Friesen (Barrie, ON) had 34 assists.
In the Huskies third game in as many days, they matched up against a UNB REDS team hungry for a win after back-to-back losses to Memorial and Dalhousie.
The REDS got off to a good start, erasing a 15-12 Huskies lead and coming back to win the marathon first set 27-25.
The Huskies responded with a second 25-20 second set win, lead by some stellar play by middles Bethany Smith (Moncton, N.B.) and Mariama Syll, and finished off by the tricky service of first year Madeline Watson (Brampton, ON).
But the Huskies comeback ran out of gas, as the REDS took the fourth and fifth sets with identical 25-16 scores, and won the match 3-1, handing the Huskies their first loss of the season.
REDS middle Kristen Burns was named Subway AUS player of the game with 19 kills and 12 digs. The Huskies were led by Olivia Bell with 11 kills, and Jakobie Friesen with 32 assists. Friesen leads the conference in total assists with 317, while Syll and Smith are first and second in the AUS with 27 and 24 total blocks respectively.
The Huskies, who came into the weekend’s tournament ranked #5 in U Sports, now have a record of 8-1 heading into the December break. Their next game will be Friday, Jan. 14 against the Acadia Axewomen.
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