SHERBROOKE -- Claire Vercheval of Ste. Julie., Que., scored a game-high 17 points as the McGill women's volleyball team exacted some measure of revenge with a 3-0 sweep over Sherbrooke to close out a disappointing season on a high note. The set scores were 25-20, 25-18 and 25-17.

The fifth-place Martlets, who finished atop the league standings last year, concluded their 2019-20 campaign with a 10-10 record, matching fourth-place Sherbrooke (10-9) in wins, although the Vert & Or still have a game in hand and will close out their schedule on Saturday when they host second-place Laval (13-6).

Regardless of what Sherbrooke does in their finale, McGill cannot catch them because the Vert & Or won the head-to-head season 3-2, sweeping all three meetings in the first semester. Had the Martlets taken just one of those three, they would be in the playoffs today, with Sherbrooke looking on from the outside. It marks the first time since 2015 that McGill has failed to qualify for post-season play.

In Friday night's affair, the Martlets had nothing to play for except pride. They showed their true colours, however, gaining the upper-hand in points (53-37), kills (40-29), service aces (10-7), stuff blocks (3-1), assists (36-29) and digs (60-59).

"We really stepped up our game over the past month and fought really hard for the remainder of the season," said Rachele Beliveau, who was coaching in her 1,200th game overall behind the McGill bench and upped her 29-year totals to 661-537-2. "We played really well today, were relaxed and enjoyed the game.  I'm very pleased that we showed up and had a serious, professional approach today. It would have been easy to let it go, especially knowing that we were out of the playoffs."

Vercheval paced the squad with 13 kills, three aces and two assisted blocks, to go along with five digs and one assist. The only other player to reach double digits in scoring was Elisabeth Perrault with 10 points -- all on kills -- to go with eight digs.

Teammates Andreanne Tremblay and Rowan Fletcher led the dig tally with 14 and 12, respectively, while Tremblay posted a game-high 29 assists, in addition to a pair of kills, two aces and an assisted block.

Sherbrooke's top scorer was Maude Frechette, who was limited to just eight points.

Including non-conference play, the Martlets finished with a respectable 21-14 record. It marked the final collegiate game for as many as six graduating seniors, although a few are expected back for another degree. The group featured Christina Piccinin, Clare Nishikawa, team captain Rowan Fletcher, Elisabeth Perrault, Lea-Marie Duguay and Myriam Robitaille.

"It was still a privilege to coach this group this season, despite a tough semester last fall," concluded Beliveau, whose troops posted a 6-1 record down the stretch after a tepid 4-9 start. "Yes we struggled in the beginning but we've grown immensely and hopefully everyone learned something from his season. Our group identity, the way we worked and trained throughout the year was special. Too often we look only at results but there is more to being a team than just wins and losses."

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