SHERBROOKE -- Catherine Amyot scored a game-high 16.5 points but it was all in vain as the No.8 ranked McGill Martlets suffered a 3-1 setback to the Sherbrooke Vert & Or at Pavillion Univestrie, Sunday. The host squad won by set scores of 25-21, 28-26, 17-25 and 25-13.

It was Sherbrooke's first win in three regular season meetings with the Martlets but their second in five contests overall, including the two matchups in Florida over the holidays.

"We started well but our serve receive was not consistent today and we started hitting balls off the net," said Rachele Beliveau, head coach of the Martlets."Like us, Sherbrooke is a really good defensive team and that led to long rallies that challenged our fitness level."

She explained that Sherbrooke had an advantage in those situations because McGill played five full sets against Laval the night before and Sherbrooke had a day off to recover after playing on Friday.

"We didn't play our best but have to find a solution to our inconsistency. We have lots of expectations and are sometimes impatient on the court."

McGill had a slight 41-40 edge in kills and a 116-110 margin in digs. Sherbrooke had the advantage in service aces (12-5) and blocked shots (11-7).

Amyot collected a dozen kills, three aces, 1.5 stuff blocks and 18 digs. Teammates Marie-Eve Dorion of St. Hubert, Que., and Erika Cournoyer of Longueuil, Que., each tallied 8.5 points. Dorion had seven kills, 21 digs and 1.5 blocks. Cournoyer registered seven kills, five and 1.5 blocks. Team captain Yasmeen Dawoodjee, a fifth-year setter from Ottawa, put up 36 assists to go along with a team-high 30 digs, an ace and an assisted block.

Sophomore Emilie Matte de Grasse finally made the long-awaited return to the lineup since suffering a high-ankle sprain during the second interlocking tournament on Oct. 24. The 5-foot-10 power-hitter from Montreal sat out the first set but was inserted into the lineup in the second set and was subbed in and out for the remainder of the game. She was credited with three kills, one ace, 1.5 stuff blocks and eight digs.

Sarah-Jeanne Meunier-Bédard led the Vert & Or with 15.5 points, posting 13 kills, 2.5 blocks and 14 digs.

McGill is 26-8 overall, including an 11-4 record in the five team RSEQ conference with seven contests remaining before post-season play. The Martlets are tied for second place with Sherbrooke (11-5) but have a game in hand. The Montreal Carabins, who lead the league with a 13-3 record, will be next on McGill's schedule in another key confrontation, slated for Jan. 22 at Love Competition Hall. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.

RSEQ STANDINGS
 

Pos	TEAM	GP	W	L	SW	SL	PF	PA	WIN%	GBL	PTS
1	Montréal	16	13	3	42	16	1369	1123	0.813	0.0	26
2	McGill	15	11	4	40	19	1373	1183	0.733	1.5	22
3	Sherbrooke	16	11	5	35	23	1318	1248	0.688	2.0	22
4	Laval	15	7	8	29	30	1305	1303	0.467	5.5	14
5	UQAM	16	4	12	19	41	1228	1364	0.250	9.0	8

SOURCE:
 
Earl Zukerman
Communications Officer
Athletics & Recreation
McGill University
514-398-7012 (Tel.)
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www.mcgill athletics.ca
earl.zukerman@mcgill.ca
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