NORTH BAY, Ont. (November 6, 2015) – The Gaels (3-1) fought a tough battle to come out on top three sets to two against the Nipissing Lakers (3-3) this Friday night in North Bay.
 
GAME FLOW
It was a tight first set with the teams almost matching percentages as they traded the early leads. Nipissing managed to get ahead and lead at the technical 16-14 and maintain the lead until the end, to take the first set 25-23.

The Gaels responded aggressively in the second, getting ahead 16-10 at the technical timeout off a five point run. From there, the Gaels kept their momentum rolling and scooped up two consecutive set wins of 25-15 and 25-19 to claim a 2-1 lead heading into the fourth.

Trying to wrap up the set as they had the past two, the Gaels got going early with a lead of 6-4. Nipissing kept on their heels and as the set continued the teams traded points with the Gaels getting out ahead at the technical timeout 16-14. The lead competition until the Lakers got down four consecutive points to pull far enough ahead to win the set 25-22, tying the match at 2-2.

It was down to the wire in the final frame as again, the teams fought to catch and maintain a lead. The Lakers met a match point 16-15 off a kill by Lyndon Sonego, but the Gaels dominated the last points and finished the 3-2 win with the 18-16 set.

Marko Dakic (Mississauga, Ont.) had a big night for the Gaels with 22 kills and six digs, while Chris Brunet (Calgary, Alta.) followed him up with six kills and 13 digs. The Lakers were led by Cameron Branch who smacked down 23 kills and grabbed 11 digs.
 
BY THE NUMBERS  
25.5 – Points by Marko Dakic
13 – Digs by Chris Brunet
23 – Kills by Cameron Branch
18 – Digs by Mike Ballagh for Nipissing  
 
UP NEXT
The Gaels will continue their road weekend tomorrow November 7 when they head to Toronto to take on the York Lions at 8:00 pm.