HAWKS LOSE FIRST MATCH OF THE SEASON
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Fanshawe ( ) | 25 | 20 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
|
Humber ( ) | 15 | 25 | 21 | 22 | 1 |
By: Natalie Stoberman
The Hawks picked up their first loss of the season in a tough match against the West Division leaders Fanshawe Falcons. With first place on the line, the Hawks lost 3-1 - 15-25, 25-20, 21-25 and 22-25.
Humber didn't have the start they needed and quickly fell behind in the first set. Outside hitter Clayton Blanchette was lights out for the Hawks and racked up six kills but Humber could not generate any momentum from him. Fanshawe cruised to an easy 25-15 opening set win.
The Hawks showed up for the second set, which was hands down the most exciting point of the match. Humber's defence tightened up and won a few back-and-forth rallies that went on for almost 15 hits. The Hawks kept building their attack and the one-two punch of Blanchette and outside hitter Nathan Murdock pushed the Hawks over the top to even the match with a 25-20 victory.
Humber looked as if they had enough momentum to take into the third set after middle Stefan Vukmanovic slammed a kill right into Fanshawe's attack line. However, little by little the Falcons chipped away at Humber's defence and worked their way to back to win the set 25-21.
The Falcons had taken over in the fourth and deciding set and jumped to a 15-7 lead. Setter Simon Smyth and Blanchette stepped up to get Humber back in the match with a three point rally on Blanchette's serve. Outside hitter Nathan Murdock went on a serving rally of his own, making it a three point contest and forcing the Fanshawe bench to use a timeout. However, Humber's effort was not enough and the Falcons went on to win the final set 25-22.
Blanchette paced the way for the Hawks in the loss, recording a career-high 18 kills. Murdoch also had another great game as he recorded 11 kills, four service aces and two stuff blocks.
Up next for the Hawks will be a road game in Hamilton to play the Mohawk Mountaineers on Nov. 14. Game time is set for 6:00pm.
