MONTREAL – Freshman Emma Waskiewicz scored 13.5 points and registered a dozen digs as the new-loo McGill University women’s volleyball team officially opened its 34th year with a 3-1 victory over visiting UQTR at Love Competition Hall, Thursday.
The set scores were 25-13, 21-25, 25-19 and 25-20.
It was a familiar result for the new-look Martlets, who improved to 16-0 lifetime against UQTR, a team that returned to the Quebec league in 2021 after leaving in 2007.
McGill had a slight advantage in most categories, including kills (39-36), stuff blocks (10-7), digs (51-47) and assists (33-32). The Pats held an 11-8 margin in kills.
“Our first set was so good that we kind of lost focus in the second but the positive news was that we were able to re-focus and finish,” said Martlets head coach Rachèle Béliveau, whose rookie-laden roster features 13 freshmen, to go along with six sophomores, three juniors and a pair of seniors.
“I was really pleased with the way we dealt with the game today and with our blocking. We have been working hard on that and footwork in practice and it showed today,” noted Beliveau, in her 34th year as bench boss of the Martlets. “In general, our passing improved as the game progressed.”
Waskiewicz, a 5-foot-8 power-hitter from Laval, Que., added an assisted block and one service ace. The 20-year-old management major was one three McGill players to reach double digits in scoring.
“Emma has played very consistently (since the start of the preseason). She’s a good all-around player and finds ways to score the ball around the net even though she’s not that tall. She plays solid on defence and has good movement in transition.”
Joining her in that department was rookie Elyssa Lajmi(10.5 pts), a six-foot-power-hitter from France, and sophomore middle-blocker Emilia Grigorova(10 pts), a native of Sofia, Bulgaria.
It’s a busy week for the volleyball squad, which improved to 3-1 overall (1-0 in league play). The Martlets will host the Windsor Lancers (1-0-1) with an informal scrimmage at Love Competition Hall on Friday (Oct. 11), then the two will tango in a non-conference game on Saturday at 1 p.m. The Martlets resume their regular season on Sunday (Oct. 13) with a tough road game in Sherbrooke.
MARTLETS MURMURS: Two McGill co-captains saw limited duty in the game — junior power-hitter Rachel Leduc and senior setter Charlotte Chouinard-Laliberte – as they are recovering from injuries suffered in preseason play. Rounding out the team’s leadership group is co-captain Erin Keating, a fifth-year political science senior from Deerfield, Illinois.