The Queen's Gaels swept the Nipissing Lakers 3-0 in the OUA semifinals on Friday night at home to punch themselves a ticket to the OUA finals. Leading the charge on offense for the Gaels was Nikola Mitrovic (Economics) with a staggering 16 kills, while middle Alex Brdarevic (Engineering) put up a solid 7 kills. Outside hitter Reed Venning (Arts & Science) made 6 kills and 4 service aces, while Chris Zimmerman (Arts) directed the offense with 34 assists and 1 kill.
The stands were packed for the home team, and the intensity was high. The match started out closely contested, however, Queen's earned a slight 12-8 lead to force a Lakers timeout. Zimmerman fed the Gaels' offense, setting up all of their top five hitters for kills in the opening set. The setter picked up a kill midway through the set to bring the Queen's lead to 14-10, as the home bench erupted. Despite this, the Lakers managed to cut the home team's lead to 18-17, resulting in a Gaels timeout. On the service line, Ben Carr (Arts & Science) picked up their second ace of the game, elating the home crowd and stunning the Nipissing defense. Queen's held onto their lead and finished the first set on a solo block from Mitrovic, taking it 25-18.
The Lakers came into the second set with momentum, finding a 4-0 lead. Queen's remained composed, adjusting their defense against the Lakers' offense. Nipissing continued to hold a small lead, but with the help of back-to-back aces from Venning, Queen's narrowed the gap to 11-12. Zimmerman and Izaak Zabjek (Kinesiology) made a double block, tying the score up at 15-15. Shortly after, a solo block from Venning brought the Gaels their first lead of the second set. Queen's began to establish their lead late in the set, with the stands roaring after each home team point. The Gaels reached set point off a kill from Venning at 24-19, however, the Lakers stayed alive for three more points. Regardless, Queen's came out on top, 25-22, going up two sets to none.
Venning opened the third set with a service ace, catching the Lakers off guard. Similarly to the second set, the third had the teams exchanging points back and forth, with neither side finding a significant lead early on. The Gaels went up 10-8 and Nipissing took a timeout; coming out of the break, Queen's came through with a huge double block from Brdarevic and Zimmerman. The Gaels were connecting well at the net, coming out with quick kills and building up their offensive momentum. The teams kept the score close, tying up to 16-16. Queen's found and held a slight lead late in the set when it mattered most. Mitrovic made a kill from the outside to bring the Gaels to set point, as Queen's won the final set 25-22 to advance to the OUA finals.
Up next, the Queen's Gaels, the reigning OUA champions, will look forward to playing in the OUA finals for the Forsyth Cup in their third consecutive year. Queen's, the no. 3 seed, will play on Friday, March 6th against the Windsor Lancers, the no. 1 seed, on the road.
