Kingston ON – The Mustangs kicked off their weekend doubleheader against Queen’s on Friday night, losing the hard-fought battle in five sets.
The two sides were evenly matched as the game continued to go back-and-forth and remained close from the start. After dropping the first set 25-19, the Mustangs took the second and third 25-20 and 30-28 respectively. Queen’s took the next two sets 25-19 and 17-15 to secure the win.
Blake Fenwick led Western with 22 kills and 1 ace. Jason Guy followed with 10 kills and 2 aces while Amit Sayal had 9 kills and 1 ace.
The team’s exchanged points to start the opening set keeping things tied early on.
With things even at 11, it was the Gaels who took the next two points to find a small lead before Western tied things up yet again at 15 off of a block from Josiah Esau and Nicolas Folz.
Tied at 17 yet again, the hosts took the next five points, forcing two timeouts from Western in the process.
Kills from Folz and Jason Guy looked to get Western back in the set, but they ultimately dropped the opener 25-19.
The purple and white took a 2-0 lead to start the second set, but Queen’s tied it up quickly.
An ace from Blake Fenwick followed by a Queen’s error put Western up 6-2 as they went on a four-point streak.
Rallying behind a Fenwick serve, Western found themselves up by six at 15-9, taking control of the set. Some service errors by the hosts and a kill from Fenwick extended this even more for the ‘Stangs as the set remained in reach at 20-12.
Coming off the bench to serve at 21-14, Jack Cochran registered an ace to make his presence known.
Despite some pushback from the Gaels near the end of the set, a service error handed the set to Western at 25-20.
Kills from Folz, Fenwick, and Millard alongside an ace from Guy got the ‘Stangs off to a 5-2 start in the third set. The hosts took the next five of seven however to tie things up at seven.
The two teams continued to go point for point, but kills once again from Guy and Fenwick alongside Queen’s errors restored a four-point lead for the ‘Stangs at 14-10.
The Gaels managed to fight back, pulling back within one on a few occasions before eventually taking the lead at 21-20.
Sitting tied at 23, an ace from Josh Thorson gave set-point to the purple and white, but a block from the Gaels tied it up yet again. It continued to stay tied in this very contested set, until an ace from Guy eventually won it for Western at 30-28.
Looking to stay alive in this game, the hosts got off to a hot 4-1 start in the fourth set. The Mustangs kept it close, eventually tying things up at 10 off of a Gaels error. Another error by the hosts alongside a kill from Fenwick handed the lead to the purple and white moments later.
Matching the tone of the rest of this game, the set continued to go back and forth as the sides continued to fight hard and exchange leads before Queen’s found a gap at 19-13 with seven consecutive points.
The Gaels forced a fifth set by taking the fourth 25-19.
Two kills from Fenwick got the purple and white on the board as Queen’s doubled up 4-2 on the ‘Stangs early on in the fifth.
Kills from Amit Sayal, Fenwick and Guy helped to tie things up at 7, as this one continued to go point for point much like the rest of the game.
Despite their efforts, the ‘Stangs ultimately fell short losing the set 17-15 and the game along with it.
With the loss Western drops to 9-7 on the season while Queen’s improves to 9-6 and extends their win streak to three.
The Mustangs and Gaels will face off again Saturday night to conclude the weekend with first-serve set for 8pm in Kingston. The action will be available to watch on OUA.tv
This article is shared as part of our Fair Dealing Policy. For the original article, please visit: https://westernmustangs.ca/news/2023/2/4/mens-volleyball-mustangs-fall-3-2-in-close-battle-against-queen-s.aspx
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