Queen’s Men’s Volleyball secured their first regular season victory, taking down the Nipissing Lakers 3-1 on Friday night.
The win comes on the tail end of a successful preseason that saw them take down the Sherbrooke Vert et Or —2024’s USPORT Men’s Volleyball Championship Silver Medalists.
After dropping the first set, Queen’s came back and took the next three (20-25, 25-19, 25-22, 25-17).
Queen’s struggled to find their groove in the first, accumulating errors and trailing behind the Lakers. However, once they hit their stride they never looked back.
“I think we let our opponents dictate the vibe of the match and the presence instead of asserting our style of play and our presence. I think we took the first set to feel out how we were going to be tested instead of playing our game,” Head Coach Gabriel deGroot said.
Through the second and the third the Gaels demonstrated their presence on the court, increasing pressure on the Lakers, both at the net and from the service line.
“Our serving pressure gets us out of tough situations. When we are dialled in on our serving pressure our opponents can’t handle it. I think once we figured out the pace of the opponent’s offense we blocked really well,” deGroot added.
The Gaels amassed seven service aces and 8.5 blocks, six of which were solo.
Zig Licis (Computer Engineering) led the ways in the win with 22 points off of 20 kills, one block and one service ace. Reed Venning (Arts & Science)also contributed 10 kills and Dax Tompkins (Arts) added five blocks.
The Gaels take on the Lakers for a second time on Saturday, Oct. 26, at 4pm. Tickets are for sale online and are free for students