By Bianca Bharti
The Ryerson men’s volleyball team came back from their 2-game losing streak, beating the York University Lions 3-1 (25-18, 25-18, 19-25, 25-19) Friday night at the Mattamy Athletic Centre.
York proved to be a formidable opponent throughout the match, often keeping pace with the Rams. Ryerson showed its strength during the first two sets, being able to stay ahead of the York Lions to win both sets at 25-18 each.
The Rams began to lose their composure once the third set came around. York’s blocking helped give them a leg up on the Rams. By the technical timeout, the score was 12-16 for York, who went on to win the set 19-25.
“York was switching it up a little bit and we finally started to catch on to what they were doing in the third set,” said outside hitter Lucas Coleman.
In the fourth set, the Rams bounced back, leading the technical timeout at 16-14.
It was still a tight game, however. Outside hitters Robert Wojcik and Coleman helped keep the team alive with 17 and 15 kills respectively throughout the entire match.
“Our reception and our attack was a little more consistent [than York’s],” said head coach Dustin Reid. “When we were pushed, we responded really well, especially during the fourth set.”
The Rams won that fourth set at 25-19, breaking their two-game losing streak in the process.
“We played at a high level for the whole match and that’s why we won,” said Reid.
Ryerson now stands third in the Ontario University Athletics East standings, behind Queen’s and McMaster.
On Saturday, Nov. 21, the Rams face off against Nipissing at the Mattamy Athletic Centre.
Coleman mentioned that the team will need to get plenty of rest and stretch well in order to prepare for that game.
“Nipissing is a very good team at fighting,” said Coleman. “They don’t let just anyone win an easy match and they’re definitely the surprise team of this year.”
Leave a Reply