HAWKS DROP TIGHT MATCH TO OPEN 2018 PRE-SEASON

Story by: Aideena Wickstrom

NORTH BAY, ON: In what has become commonplace, the Humber Hawks men's volleyball team opened up their 2018 pre-season schedule in North Bay against the Nipissing Lakers.

The Humber Men's Volleyball team had a rocky start to their first pre-season game, but although being down by five points, they didn't let that deficit keep them from firing back at the Nipissing Laker's by tying the score to 14-14. The Hawks continued to fight hard as the Lakers went on a few serving runs, stretching into a 6 point lead. Once again, the Hawks didn't let this get to them, and they were able to come back into the race with a close score of 23-20. Both teams fought hard as they battled back and forth, but Nipissing was able to pull away with a 25-20 victory over the men's team.

Both teams fought hard in the second set, battling point for point without giving each other the chance to take the lead. With the Lakers on their toes, the Hawks continued to fight hard, creating an intense score of 18-18. At this point, the Hawks began to lose a bit of steam, letting the Lakers slip away slowly and take the win of 25-23.

The Hawks struck back strong in the third set, leaving the Lakers in the dust with a strong 5 point lead. Making sure the opposing team doesn't sneak back into the Hawks lead, the men played ruthlessly, not letting any ball hit the floor without one of them hitting it as well. Our mens team created a 16-9 lead, and forced the coach of the Lakers to call a time out. After the time out, the Lakers made a convincing come back, but the Hawks were determined to force the game into a fourth set. They managed to stop the opposition from coming back into the game with a 25-19 win.

During the fourth set, the Hawks had a slow start, being unable to make the proper connections to get them the needed points. They trailer behind Nipissing by just three points for the majority of the match, but slowly got further behind as they couldn't seem to put the ball away. They fell to the Lakers 25-14.

Overall, the men's team played their hardest, despite missing some of their key players. Libero Edward Lai got dozens of digs which kept Humber's back row together.

WHAT'S NEXT: Humber will face the Lakers once again, as the two teams will meet on the Lakers home court at 4:00 pm