By Eli Silverstone
The Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) Bold women’s volleyball team defeated the Université de Moncton Aigles Bleues in three sets (27-25, 25-17, 25-23) on Saturday afternoon at the Mattamy Athletic Centre.
A dominant second set as well as close wins in the first and third sets allowed TMU to come away with the pre-season win against the out-of-conference opponent. It was TMU’s sixth pre-season game of the year, bringing their exhibition record to 3-3. The win for the Bold has helped further incite confidence and excitement within the squad for the season ahead.
“We’ve been playing pre-season for seven weeks now and I think we are at a point where we want to be going into exhibition matches like today and treating them like real matches,” said TMU head coach Dustin Reid.
The first set went back and forth before the Bold grabbed a 16-13 lead. Moncton stormed back with eight consecutive points, giving themselves a 21-16 lead and looking to grab the opening set. Reid used two timeouts to settle his team down and reset in the final stages of the frame.
“[The timeouts were used to] give us a breather, give us a chance to get back on the right track,” said Reid.
TMU fought back to tie it at 25-25 before winning the final two points to grab the opening set, giving them the 1-0 match lead.
“We want to be going into exhibition matches like today and treating them like real matches”
The Bold rode their comeback ending into a fantastic start to the second set, as they jumped out to a 12-6 lead. TMU capitalized on some Moncton mistakes and grew their lead to 21-12. Moncton attempted a late comeback, but the Bold finished it off 25-18.
“We controlled their serving a little better. [Moncton] is a team that works hard to get points from their serving,” said Reid about the squad’s success in the second frame.
Through the first two sets, third-year Bold outside hitter Scarlett Gingera had seven kills and third-year Bold setter Sarah Zonneveld had 16 assists. “Scarlett continues improving as an all-around player, she can score [in] so many ways,” said Reid. “Sarah has been sharing time as a setter [in] her first two seasons. This is her chance to really take the job and run with it, and she’s been doing it.”
The third set was similar to the back-and-forth opening frame. TMU and Moncton were tied 9-9 halfway through before the Bold pulled away, leading 18-13. Moncton cut the TMU lead to 24-23, refusing to go down without a fight. The Bold showed resilience and finished the match 25-23, erasing any chances of a comeback.
Following that, both squads elected to play a fourth and final set for pre-season purposes. In the extra frame, both sides made sure as many rostered players got a look on the court. TMU took away that set as well, with a score of 25-18.
To wrap up their exhibition schedule, the Bold face off against the University of Toronto (U of T) Blues on Oct. 20 at the Goldring Centre at 5 p.m., before kicking off their regular season a week later.
“[U of T] is our most traditional rival. We always play them in the pre-season so we’re excited about that matchup,” said Reid.
UP NEXT: Following their final exhibition game against U of T, TMU’s regular season will begin with a four-game home stand starting on Oct. 27 against the Western Mustangs—the first of a back-to-back. The first serve is scheduled for 6 p.m.
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