Box Score
MONTREAL- Marie-Sophie Nadeau scored a game-high 19 points as the No.3-ranked Montreal Carabins volleyball team swept McGill in straight sets on Friday night at Love Competition Hall. The Carabins, who won by set scores of 25-21, 26-24 and 25-23, took over top spot in the four-team RSEQ conference with a 12-3 record.
Montreal has won 34 of the last 39 meetings overall against McGill, which had snapped an eight-year winless drought against the Carabins with a 3-0 road sweep on Nov.17.
Top scorers for McGill were
Marie-Christine Lapointe, a senior from St. Jean sur Richelieu. Que., and
Marie-Pier Durivage, a second-year transfer from Universite Laval, and a native of St. Nicholas, Que.
Lapointe posted 10 points on nine kills and two assisted blocks, to go along with a game-high 19 digs. Durivage contributed 10 points, on six kills and four total stuff blocks. She added five digs.
Senior
Daphnee-Maude Andre-Morin, the McGill libero, was on her defensive game registering 18 digs in a losing cause.
"We started each set very strong and played even with them in the middle part but seemed to lose our focus at the end of each set," said
Rachele Beliveau, head coach of the Martlets. "We dug well on defence but didn't hit with efficiency as a team. We weren't able to score with our blocking hands above the net like we did when we beat them in their gym earlier in the season."
McGill had commanding 82-35 edge in digs but the Carabins countered with a 37-24 margin in kills and a 24-10 advantage in stuff blocks.
The Martlets remained third in the highly-competitive four-team Quebec conference with a 9-5 record, nestled four points behind second-place Laval (11-3) and four points ahead of last-place Sherbrooke (7-8). With five matches remaining before post-season play, McGill's magic number to clinch a playoff berth is two wins. Any combination of McGill victories or Sherbrooke losses equaling two will suffice. The Martlets will battle the Rouge et Or in Quebec City on Saturday. The game is slated to be webcast live at
Rouge et Or TV
Montreal will have a one-week break before hosting the Martlets on Jan. 24.