BRANDON, Man. -- Pushed harder than they ever were during their OUA conference season, the Toronto Varsity Blues rose to the challenge on Friday to open the CIS women's volleyball championship.

Catherine Amyot tallied a game-high 23 points and team captain Yasmeen Dawoodjee of Ottawa racked up a school record 60 assists but it was not enough as seventh-seeded McGill suffered a heartbreaking 3-2 loss to No.2 Toronto in a two-hour and 10-minute marathon. The Varsity Blues rallied from 1-0 and 2-1 deficits to win by set scores of 18-25, 25-17, 25-27, 25-23 and 15-13.

The Martlets appeared to have the upper hand after the third set when they rallied from a seven-point deficit to win the frame in extra points. McGill was only two points away from victory, leading 23-19 in the fourth set, when UofT won the next six points to force the decisive tie-breaker. McGill trailed throughout the final set and despite a late comeback effort that narrowed a 14-9 gap to 14-13, Toronto ultimately sealed their semifinal berth against UBC-Okanagan.

The Martlets will move on to a consolation semifinal against Dalhousie on Saturday at 1:30 pm (Eastern), where a victory will allow them to challenge for fifth place on Sunday.

"What we really wanted to focus on was fighting for every point and being patient throughout the rally," said Caleigh Cruickshank of Etobicoke, Ont., who led Toronto with 14 kills, to go along with an ace, two blocks and 15 digs. "McGill is a fantastic team who always brings the ball back, so you just always have to be ready for the second, third, fourth, fifth opportunity in a rally."

Despite the loss, the Martlets had the upper hand in a few key stats, with a 70-54 edge in kills and a 7-4 advantage in service aces. Toronto held a 15-8 margin in stuff blocks and in hitting percentage (18.4 vs. 14.8). Defence was the order of the day and both teams were credited with an identical 89 digs.

"I think overall we played a very good match," said McGill's Rachele Beliveau, voted the Quebec conference coach of the year "We fought really hard. The competition we faced today, we see it a lot in our conference, every week games like this. At one point I thought it would give us an advantage, but at the same time Toronto has more experience. They've been to a national (championship), it's not their first one. The players on the court stayed calm and kept playing (through adversity)."

Only one McGill player, Dawoodjee, had been to a CIS national championship before and the second-team All-Canadian setter did not disappoint, surpassing the previous team assist record (57), which she set at the Innisbrooke Invitational Tournament in Florida in early January. The fifth-year veteran also had two kills, an ace, a pair of blocks and was credited with nine digs.

Amyot, a materials engineering senior from Montreal, paced the Martlets with 22 kills and a service ace, along with 17 digs and an assist.

Myriam Robitaille, a second-team All-Canadian, was named as McGill's player of the game. She tallied 22.5 points on the strength of 19 kills and five stuff blocks. The sophomore middle-blocker from Terrebonne, Que., added three digs and an assist.

Other top McGill contributors included Marie-Eve Dorion of St. Hubert, Que., who registered a team-high 24 digs, in addition to six kills, a pair of aces and three stuff blocks. Sophomore power-hitter Emilie Matte de Grasse of Montreal, recorded 10 kills and a game-high three aces, along with a block and 15 digs. Marjolaine Ste-Marie, a 5-foot-5 libero from St. Lambert, Que., had 19 digs and two assists. Erika Cournoyer, a junior from Longueuil, Que., tallied 11 kills, three blocks, two digs and one assist.

McGill had previously faced Toronto twice at the Martlet Invitational tourney in October, winning both exhibition contests against the Varsity Blues, who went on to capture the OUA title with an undefeated season in conference play and the OUA playoffs.

Facing an opponent that had only lost four sets during the OUA regular season and playoffs, the Martlets came out of the gate intent on pulling off the upset. They built an early 6-2 and maintained control throughout the first set, finishing it off on a block by Dorion and  Cournoyer.

That woke up the Varsity Blues, who controlled the entire second set, committing only one error and tying the match.

The third set was a dramatic back-and-forth struggle. The Varsity Blues picked up where they left off in the second set, racing out to a 9-3 lead. The Martlets roared back with an 8-2 run that put them up 22-20, lost the next four points to face set point, then battled back to win the set and retake the lead in the match on a kill by Emilie Matte de Grasse.

After the Varsity Blues came from behind to win the fourth set, they held off a late McGill surge in the fifth set to cap the comeback.

Toronto head coach Kristine Drakich believes it was a character-building win that will help her team prepare for the semifinals.

"You know every match is tough here," said Drakich. "It's about managing the moments that are here. Every match is a battle and every opponent is tough for different reasons. It's about managing our side and being ready for a fight, another battle."

Beliveau believes the match was good experience for her troops and hopes her team will continue to push hard in the consolation side.

"If we can come fifth that means we're close to being at a championship level," Beliveau said. "I have a team that's been nicely competing this year and I want us to finish on a good note like we did the whole year."
 

STAT LEADERS

Toronto
Kills: Caleigh Cruickshank (14)
Points: Caleigh Cruickshank (16.5), Tessa Davis (16)
Blocks: Tessa Davis (1,8)
Digs: Denise Wooding (28)
Service aces: Alina Dormann (2)

Player of the match: Bojana Radan

McGill
Kills: Catherine Amyot (22), Myriam Robitaille (19)
Points: Catherine Amyot (23), Myriam Robitaille (22.5)
Blocks: Myriam Robitaille (2,3)
Digs: Marie-Eve Dorion (24)
Service aces: Emilie Matte de gras (3)

Player of the match: Myriam Robitaille

CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE & RESULTS (CENTRAL TIME)

Friday, March 11
12:30 Quarter-final #1: Toronto 3, McGill 2 (18-25, 25-17, 25-27, 25-23, 15-13)
14:30 Quarter-final #2: UBC Okanagan 3, Dalhousie 0 (25-17, 25-10, 25-15)
18:00 Quarter-final #3: Trinity Western 3, Brandon 1 (25-23, 25-15, 23-25, 25-19)
20:00 Quarter-final #4: UBC 3, Montreal 1 (20-25, 25-20, 28-26, 25-20)

Saturday, March 12
12:30 Consolation #1: McGill vs. Dalhousie (WCGtv / www.CIS-SIC.tv)
14:30 Consolation #2: Brandon vs. Montreal (WCGtv / www.CIS-SIC.tv)
18:00 Semifinal #1: Toronto vs. UBC Okanagan (WCGtv / www.CIS-SIC.tv)
20:00 Semifinal #2: Trinity Western vs. UBC (WCGtv / www.CIS-SIC.tv)

Sunday, March 13
13:00 5th place (WCGtv / www.CIS-SIC.tv)
15:00 Bronze medal (WCGtv / www.CIS-SIC.tv)
18:00 Championship final (WCGtv / www.CIS-SIC.tv)

 

FOR MORE INFO CONTACT:
Kirsten Whelan or Earl Zukerman
McGill Sports Info Office
(514) 398-7012