TORONTO – The Rams men’s volleyball team secured a 3-0 win over the Trent Excalibur, completing a double-header sweep and inching closer to an OUA postseason spot.
Rams first-year outside hitters Jacob Walker and Kai Higuchi led the game in kills with 10 and eight respectively, as Trent’s Ryan Austin put up a team-high of four.
The young Rams have looked like a much stronger team in 2022, with the emergence of Higuchi and the improved team play with a semester under their belt likely being primary components.
“I’m really glad coach gave me the opportunity,” said Higuchi post-game when talking about his play this year. “Every time I play I try to earn my spot and it’s been really exciting that we’re starting to get results.”
He touched on the team’s youth and the positive signs he has seen for years to come, saying, “I think it bodes well for the future (getting many positive results) and if we play together like this for four years I think we can have a really strong team.”
Coming off a dominant 3-0 win over the Excalibur on Wednesday night, the Rams entered tonight’s match with a calm, confident approach as they fired on all cylinders.
Opening the game with a 16-5 lead, the Rams went on to take the first set 25-13 as they showcased strong serving, minimal errors and powerful attacks.
Starting the game at middle, Omari Young tallied three kills and two blocks in the opening set and helped get the Rams rolling.
With Trent tallying 10 attack errors in the second set, things were looking easy for the Rams as they rolled onto another win at 25-12.
It was Walker who dominated the second with five kills on efficient hitting, as the Excalibur had no answer for the rookie.
As the Rams began to play more loosely, experimenting with trick plays and enjoying themselves on the court, the Excalibur improved their defence and gave the Rams more difficulty on offence, making it the closest set of the match.
In the end however, the Rams showed to be too powerful and too athletic to handle, taking the set 25-21 and leading most of the way.
“I see a lot of joy on our team,” expressed Rams interim head coach Niko Rukavina after the win. “I think there’s a lot of camaraderie building, and also now that we’re in ‘playoff mode’ guys know that we’ve been away for a bit and we’re excited about the opportunity.”
The Rams are back on Saturday to take on Royal Military College in their final game of the season, and a win over the Paladins would secure them a playoff berth.
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