January 15, 2025

TORONTO, ON: The Niagara Knights men's volleyball team (7-6) hit the road to take on
the #1 Humber Hawks (14-0). The evening matchup had everything a fan could want
with 3 of the 5 sets going into extra points in the unfortunate 3-2 Knights loss (set
scores were 29-27, 20-25, 25-27, 30-28 and 9-15).
The Knights shortened their bench a little bit for this match that was back-and-forth all
night and saw 4 Knights players score double-digit points. The 1 st set found the Knights
fighting back on three separate occasions to bring themselves back into the game
before eventually taking the set victory and handing the Hawks their 5 th set loss of the
season. Once the next two sets had settled, the Hawks came out with the 2-1 lead. On
their heels, the Knights mustered up everything they could to take another extra point
set win and force the match into a deciding 5 th set. Unfortunately, the Knights could not
find the answer to put this game away as the Hawks took the final set 15-9 to secure
the win.
Wizdom Smith, the 1 st year opposite hailing from Winnipeg, Manitoba, and Liam
Marchetti, the 2 nd year middle from Richmond Hill, Ontario, led the Knights with a
combined 30 points on 27 kills, also contributing 14 digs, 3 blocks and 1 assist. Ashton
Nieuwets and Rowan Redekop followed close behind in the points race with 11 and 10
points, respectively. Leiland Parenteau, the 1 st year setter from Winnipeg, Manitoba, got
his first start of the season and did not disappoint – posting an astonishing 46 assists,
14 digs, and 1 point.
"The boys came to play tonight" boasted Steve Stone, head coach of the Knights.
"They were a little slow initially settling in but then we took care of the ball and put
ourselves in a position to compete" Stone continued to say. When asked about the
positive takeaways they could utilize from the match, Stone said "there are really great
things in that game and the boys should be proud, but we can't be complacent. We've
got to work even harder and compete to get that next level and close out these games."
The Knights return home after this tough loss as they welcome the Sheridan Bruins (3-
10) to the Simplii Financial Athletic Centre at the Welland Campus on Saturday, January
18 th . The game is set to start at 3pm as the Knights look to get back into the win
column.
For more information on the Knights teams, please visit us at www.goknights.ca.