The No. 6 University of Toronto Varsity Blues men’s volleyball team got edged out by the Western Mustangs 2-3 (29-27, 22-25, 25-15, 17-25, 14-16) after a nail-biter of a game on Saturday (Jan. 28) night at Alumni Hall in London, Ontario.
TORONTO STATS: The Blues’ fourth-year left side Evan Falardeau led the Blues tonight, recording a game-high of 29 points and totalling 27 kills, 12 digs 2 service aces.
First-year setter Michael Hickey recorded a career-high 57 assists. Libero Daniel Tudor came in clutch with 17 digs, saving multiple rallies over the night.
HOW IT HAPPENED: The first handful of rallies set the tone for the game. Despite the back-and-forth rallies, the Blues stayed fighting in the air and ended the first set with a 29-27 victory.
The second set was as close a battle as it gets with the Mustangs eventually getting the upper hand during the last few rallies and tying the game.
Having learnt their lesson in the first two sets, the Blues got an early lead in third and held onto it until the end with particularly valuable contributions from team veterans Mitchell Neuert and Evan Falardeau’s attacks and blocks. Putting up a brick wall, the Varsity Blues were back in the lead, having won the third with a 10-point lead.
The fourth set followed a similar pattern to the second one. The lead was changing hands nearly every other rally, keeping everyone at the edge of their seats. Lo and behold, Western managed to get in the lead near the end, evening out the score again and sending the teams into fifth.
In the fifth set, it could’ve still been anyone’s game, the Blues battling it out until the very end. After falling short of victory tonight, the Blues are ready for tomorrow’s rematch.
UP NEXT: The Blues return to action Sunday, January 29 on the road vs. the Western Mustangs. First serve is set for 4:00 p.m.
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