Men crush Blues, Rams

Hawks sweep three straight sets to pick up two victories and extend their season record to 3-5

The Golden Hawks men's volleyball team hosted the University of Toronto Varsity Blues on Friday and the Ryerson Rams this past Saturday at the Athletic Complex, and came out victorious from both match-ups winning in three straight sets.

“We had a great character weekend, we won both matches 3-0,” commented Head Coach Shayne White.

The Hawks dominated the entire first set against the Rams, with great defensive blocking coming from middle Matt Polley and left-side Derek Lapp. Second-year Lapp, along with rookie left-side Samuel Schachter, made several key hits helping Laurier take the set 29-27.

Ryerson soon changed the pace of the game and came out strong in the second set, but the Hawks fought back hard and it resulted in a 25-19 win.

Lapp, Schachter and right-side Greg Houston knocked back-to-back smashes, securing the Hawks lead in the third set, with great setting hailing from veteran Robert Vitullo.

"There's certain plays that always give us a lot of energy,” said second-year Houston. "A block, or a kill, or a dig that they don't expect catches them off guard."

Libero Edward Lee served for game point, but couldn't clinch it. After a few exciting rallies, the Rams flopped with an out-of-bounds serve, giving Laurier the game point and 25-18 victory. Second-year Cameron Wheelan stood out with an overall solid game, contributing blocks and hits alike.

The win brings the Hawks to an even 3-3 for the season. "We're going into two away games next weekend, and we'll hopefully bring that to 5-3,” said White.

Next up for the boys will be the Royal Military College Paladins on Friday and Queen's University Gaels on Saturday.