TORONTO Ont. (January 13, 2018) – The Queen's Gaels (6-3) were defeated in a hard fought game against the York Lions (6-2) losing 3-2. The scores of the sets were 23-25, 20-25, 25-21, 25-22 and 15-12, with the Gaels winning the first two sets.

GAME FLOW
In the first set, the Gaels started off with an early lead, keeping the Lions trailing significantly by several points for much of the game. The Tricolour maintained their lead with strong shots by Shannon Neville (Cambridge, Ont.) and Mikayla Keith (Calgary). The Gaels lost their lead of six points late in the set, allowing the Lions to come to within two points of taking over the set. A kill by Neville won the set for Queen's with a score of 25-23.

In the second set, the Gaels took another early lead of five points with strong kills by Neville, Keith and Julia Wiercigroch (Mississauga, Ont.). Errors made by York allowed the Gaels to take a nine-point lead with a score of 24-15. The Lions then found holes in the Queen's defence and stole five more points before the Gaels ended the set with a kill from Sierra Hardy (Oakville, Ont). The score of the set was 25- 20 in favour of the Gaels.

The Lions started the third set aggressively, taking the lead on the first point and capitalizing off the Queen's errors. Despite the kills made by Wiercigroch, Neville and Olivia Van Baaren (Ottawa) the Gaels were unable to take the lead from York and lost the set on a kill from York's leading scorer. The score of the set ended as 25-21 for the Lions.

The fourth set of the game was extremely close and went point-for-point for much of the play. The Gaels held their own against a strong defensive and offensive team, and several kills from Wiercigroch and Van Baaren kept Queen's in the set. Unfortunately, in the last few plays of the set, the York Lions took the lead and won the set on a score of 25-22.

The fifth and final set began in favour of the Lions, with York accumulating a five-point lead on the Gaels early on. The Gaels fought their way back to catch the Lions lead with several kills from Wiercigroch. The Tricolour was, unfortunately, unable to surpass York and lost the set and the game on a kill from the Lions. The final score of the set was 15-12 for York, and the final score of the game was 3-2 for the Lions.

BY THE NUMBERS
14 – Digs for Sierra Hardy against the Lions
17 – Kills for Julia Wiercigroch this game
26 – Team errors for the Gaels

UP NEXT
The Gaels are heading to North Bay to play against the Nipissing Lakers on Sunday, January 14th at 12 pm.