HAWKS ROLL TO 3-0 WIN OVER NIAGARA IN ICE STORM MAKE-UP GAME
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Niagara | 21 | 16 | 23 | 0 |
|
Humber | 25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
Recap by Aideena Wickstrom
ETOBICOKE, ON: The Humber Hawks women's volleyball won their 13th game of the year on Friday night, as they swept away the Niagara Knights 3-0 (25-21, 25-16, 25-23) in the make-up game due to a weather-related postponement on Wednesday night.
The Hawks started off strong in their opening set against Niagara, as they commanded an early 3-0 lead and then proceeded to lead the Knights throughout the first half. Sticking to their game plan, the Hawks were easily able to shut down their opponents. This lead was short lived though, as the Knights soon went onto a run and tied up the score with Humber at 7-7. From here, both teams began to battle back and forth for the lead, showing off their athleticism. As neither team was able to go on an impactful servicing run, the Hawks and Knights stayed within a point of each other. By 17-18, the Niagara Head Coach chose to call a time out in order to re group her troops. Humber's coach did the same though, as both teams re entered the court and the hawks buckled down and slide into the lead. As they neared the end of the set, the Knights were biting at the Hawks feet. With Niagara within a few points reach of them, the Hawks remained disciplined and finished the set off at a tight 25-21.
The Hawks seemed worn out in the second set as they quickly fell to the Knights in a three point deficit. Niagara kept the lead as the Hawks seemed unable to find their footing. Danielle Miles put a stop to this though, as she nailed a kill straight down the line. This lead to Emma Heeney hitting the service line, nailing down a 4 point run, including an ace. This forced Niagara into a timeout at 11-7. This break did not affect Emma though, as she returned to the service line and nailed down another 4 serves, including another ace. Niagara's head coach had no choice but to call a second timeout at 14-7 to try and stop her. As Emma ended her service run, the Hawks worked to quickly earn the serve back once again. This was successful, as only two points later Rossella Falcomer began her own serving run of four. By this point, the Knights seemed unable to recover from their deficit. As the Hawks continued to build on their lead, they closed off the second set swiftly, with the final score being (25-16)
The Hawks had a slower start to the third set as they quickly gave away a four point lead. Niagara continued with the lead for the majority of the set, as the Hawks were forced to push from behind. Continuous unforced errors kept the Hawks behind, enticing coach Chris Wilkins to call his first timeout of the game at 9-13. Coming out of the timeout, the Hawks seemed more motivated to win the set. With an impressive kill by left side Emma Heeney, the Hawks began to play like themselves. Now tied up at 17-17, the Hawks and Knights continued to scale up the scoreboard one point at a time. Humber started to find flow towards their gameplay within the last points of the game, as they pulled the lead from under Niagara's feet. The Knights worked to stop this as they called a fast timeout at 22-22. Humber stayed disciplined though, not letting Niagara creep in from behind. Emma Heeney ended off the game with a huge outside kill. (25-22)
In this game, Trinity Lougheed, Sally Nyguen, Rossella Falcomer, and Kyla Wilkins were celebrated for their sacrifice of time and dedication towards the team throughout the year(s).
Danielle Miles and Emma Heeney dominated the net, with 9 and 7 kills each, while Kyla Wilkins added 14 digs onto her spreadsheet, bringing her total career number to 620. Kyla Wilkins also earned herself Hawk Nation Player of the Game, as she finished off her final regular season home game after 5 years.
WHATS NEXT?
The Hawks will play their last league game of the season on February 9th, 2019, against the Mohawk Mountaineers in Hamilton.
