The Queen's Gaels swept the McMaster Marauders in three thrilling sets on Friday night in the ARC. The Gaels were lead on offense by outside hitter Claire Carter (Business) who made 8 kills and 2 service aces. Setter Kennedy Millin (Education) directed the offense with 27 assists and 3 kills, an impressive feat for a setter. Both middles, Lauren MacPhail (Arts & Science) and Christine Abu (Arts & Science), had a strong game with MacPhail making 7 kills and 2 solo blocks, and Abu putting up a staggering 5 service aces and 6 kills.
While the match started out close, the Marauders managed to find a slight lead midway through the first set. The Gaels remained composed under pressure by generating six unanswered points, led by middle MacPhail with a block assist, kill, and solo block, to tie the score back up at 13-13. The Gaels called a timeout late in the set to regroup, as the Marauders led 21-18. Setter Millin came through with a staggering kill, elating the home bench and closing the McMaster lead to 22-21. Queen's tied the score up at 23-23 and made a come-from-behind 25-23 set win, thrilling the home crowd.
Abu opened the second set with back-to-back service aces, stunning the Marauders. Queen's was on a roll, picking up the first five points of the set with the energy building on their home court. The Gaels continued to hold the lead, and Abu was a threat on the service line, making their fifth service ace of the game. Carter was sharp on their shots, firing them down the line to make four kills in the set. Queen's held a comfortable lead as they neared set point and won the second set 25-15 off a kill by Pascale Galarneau (Health Sciences).
After a dominant second set, the Gaels continued to roll with their offensive momentum. Carter came through with back-to-back service aces as excitement filled the gym and Queen's tore away with the lead. The home team was able to reach set point with a comfortable lead, ultimately taking the final set 25-16 to sweep the reigning OUA champions in three sets.
Up next, the Gaels will rematch against the Marauders tomorrow at 4pm for their final home game of the regular season. Queen's improves their record to 10-5 on an impressive six-game win streak and come away with a big win tonight.
