Senior night sweep for No. 3 Women's Volleyball

By: Fernando Bossoes
Humber Athletics Communications

ETOBICOKE – In its last home match of the regular season, No. 3 Humber women's volleyball (17-0, 1^st West) made quick work of the Conestoga Condors (9-8, 4^th West) in straight sets (25-17, 25-15, 25-23), remaining the only undefeated team in the conference. Scarborough-native player Keyome Ellis stole the spotlight on offence with a match-high 13 points, while senior Karolina Urbanovich was all-in on every ball, securing a season-high 11 digs.

Match Recap 

The crowd at the Hawks' Nest was living its best dream, as this was the fourth consecutive match that Humber was playing on its home territory. Having witnessed three previous home-game victories, the Humber fans were excited to watch this nest-to-nest match against the Conestoga Condors. 

The Hawks have remained unbeaten against Conestoga since they rejoined volleyball in 2010 and were determined to keep this going with a hot start. Graduating athlete Sydney Ferguson did not let the emotions from the seniors night take her focus away from the match, as the senior player stole the spotlight with early back-to-back aces. Humber would rely on its seniors in the first set. Cassidy Andrews was firing from the middle while Te-Anna Stephenson made feathers fly on the court with massive blocks, proving to the Condors that the Hawks rule the roost. Humber would control the set to capture a 25-17 win. 

As both teams returned to the second set, the Condors knew they had to stop the Hawks early if they wanted something in this game, opening the set with a 3-1 lead. However, this lead would not last long, as Humber's seniors would come up clutch again. Keyome Ellis was lights out, building up momentum for Humber with a spike and a block, while further back from the end line, Leah Serlin's hands were on fire, as she would land an unstoppable ace to put the Hawks back up 15-9. Humber would not look back, securing a dominant 25-15 set win. 

The emotions were in full bloom at the Hawks' Nest as the third set began, which could be the last home-game set played for seven of Humber's senior players. The Condors returned to the third ready to set the party over in Etobicoke, as they would go on an early 10-7 run. Humber was surprisingly struggling to build up its offensive game and would see Conestoga increase its lead to six as the score read 17-11 – head coach Chris Wilkins would call a timeout to bring his players together. Wilkins had a plan, as the Hawks would return on a dominant 14-6 run. The Condors were in a tailspin as the Hawks showcased dominance with a sky-high 25-23 set victory. 

Humber is proud to have had senior players Alex Dube, Cassidy Andrews, Karolina Urbanovich, Keyome Ellis, Leah Serlin, Sydney Ferguson and Te-Anna Stephenson wearing the Hawks jersey with honour and passion. 

All of Humber's senior players were named the Hawks Player of the Game, grabbing together 45 points, 20 assists and 19 digs.

Humber Highlights

• The Hawks improve to 26-0 all-time against Conestoga.
• Humber extends its win streak to 22 consecutive matches against OCAA opponents.
• Sydney Ferguson has secured double-digit assists in ten matches this season.
• Cassidy Andrews leads the Hawks on block per set with a 0.64 percentage.
• Humber remains the only undefeated team in the conference.
• Humber sits second in the province with 180 service aces.
• The Hawks have only dropped two sets this season, the lowest since the 2003-04 season. 

What's next?

The Hawks will visit the Mohawk Mountaineers (10-7, 5^th West) on Saturday, Feb. 3, for its last regular-season game before starting their journey for the third consecutive provincial title. The first serve is set for 1 p.m.