By Matthew Davison
In their first home game in nearly two years, the Rams women’s volleyball team fell to the York Lions in four sets in front of a jam-packed crowd at the Mattamy Athletic Centre court on Nov. 13.
The Rams drop to 0-3 on the year with the loss.
“[York] hit incredibly,” said Rams head coach Dustin Reid. “I give them a lot of credit for playing so aggressively and not making a lot of mistakes. We’ve got to do a better job of making it hard for them.”
From the start of the match, the Lions did well to work the ball around the court which tested the Rams defence, which seemed to never be out of a point. York setter Chiara Da Silva facilitated her team’s attack assisting on 12 of her team’s 25 points. Outside hitters Olivia Kim and Jessica Reynolds each had 6 kills for the Lions in the opening frame. York took the first set 25 to 18.
In the second set, it seemed that the Rams adjusted to York’s hitting and were able to force them into tougher shots. The Rams overcame five service errors to take the second set 25 to 21. York continued to rack up kills with 11 kills in the set, but committed five errors on the attack.
The Lions dominated in the third set—they reeled off nine points on the serve of outside hitter Alisa Trubyuk and the Rams were unable to recover. York took the set 25 to 12.
The Rams responded well and played better in the fourth set. It was a back and forth affair with both teams committing errors. The Lions had a combined eight errors on their serve and attack, while the Rams had seven.
The fourth set saw York continue to hit the ball with velocity, recording 13 kills to the Rams nine. The Lions would take the fourth set and the match 26 to 24.
Despite dropping the final set, Reid liked his team’s response after the third set.
“In the third, we were…caught off guard there, that set was over and we had one set to play and we had to win it,” said Reid. “I’m happy with the way we performed.”
The Rams attack was led by their veterans in this match. Second-year middle Ashley Ditchfield had 10 kills on 11 total attacks, while Rams star right side Cailin Wark also had seven kills.
The Rams will look for their first win against the nationally ranked University of Toronto Varsity Blues next weekend.
UP NEXT: The Rams visit the University of Toronto Varsity Blues on Nov. 20. First serve is set for 2 p.m.
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