The Windsor Lancers were back in the friendly confines of the St. Denis Centre Saturday night, earning a 3-1 (25-14, 29-31, 25-18, 25-16) win over the Guelph Gryphons.
The win puts the Lancers back at .500 on the season and surely adds some momentum going into the Holiday break. The Lancers won’t be in action again until January 12.
STATS
Guelph’s Jonathan Pickett finished the game leading in kills with 16. Sean Spencer and Gustavo Sequeira paced the Lancers with 14 kills each.
Anthony DeGirolamo had as many assists on his own as the entire Guelph squad, with 41 assists. Jack Richards led the way for Guelph with 27.
The Lancers had a fantastic night from the service line, with five different players scoring an ace and seven aces all together. The Gryphons managed three aces on the night.
GAME FLOW
The Lancers came out on fire in the first set. Paced by some solid play at the net, the blue and gold built a solid 10-3 lead while maintaining service in the early going. Guelph’s early timeout at 10-3 did little to stop the red hot Lancers. Gustavo Sequeira and Sean Spencer led the way for Windsor with four kills each on the way to 25-14 win.
The Gryphons responded in the second set however, opening up a slim 10-6 lead on a 4-1 run. Though the Lancers responded to the run, closing the gap proved difficult. Guelph made great use of their service opportunities throughout the service, maintaining a slim 23-21 lead approaching set point. Led by some clutch service and timely attacking, the Lancers came back to force extra service in the set. While the Lancers refused to go quietly, the Gryphons held on to win a marathon set, 31-29, tying the match at 1-1.
Windsor came out on a mission in the third, running up an 8-3 lead early, forcing the Gryphons into an early timeout. Just when it looked as though the Gryphons might make a run to close the game, a service error gave the Lancers the 16-10 advantage at the technical timeout. Coming out of the technical, the Lancers kept their foot on the gas, paced by Nastase’s two aces in the set, the Lancers cruised to 25-18 set win, taking a 2-1 chokehold on the match.
The Lancers and Gryphons both came out punching in the fourth set. Sean Spencer’s offense gave the Lancers life and a 10-5 lead early, looking to close out the match. Trying to get back into it, the Gryphons committed a few service errors, the third giving the Lancers a 16-12 lead at the technical timeout. Coming out of the technical the Gryphons could not deal with the Lancers’ firepower. In the end the Lancers rode a very productive set from the service line to a 25-16 win to close out the match, 3-1.
UP NEXT
The Lancers break for the holidays before getting back to action in the New Year when the host the Western Mustangs on Wednesday, January 12, 2022 at 8:00 pm. You can purchase tickets at www.goLancers.ca/tickets.