February 2, 2025
SUDBURY, ON: The Niagara Knights women's volleyball team (12-6) took a long drive up Highway 400 and didn't stop until they reached Sudbury, to take on the Boreal Vipers (0-18) and the Cambrian Shield (9-9), in a weekend matchup to end the regular season. The Knights defeated the Vipers 3-1 (18-25, 25-10, 25-12 and 25-12) Saturday evening, before waking up in the morning to complete the Sudbury sweep by overcoming a tough battle against Cambrian on Sunday, walking away with the 3-2 victory (30-32, 26-24, 25-21, 23-25 and 16-14).
The effects of a long 5-hour bus trip for the Knights were evident as they started their match against Boreal on Saturday, appearing sluggish and out of sync, costing them a 7 point first-set loss. Coming out of the break, the Knights were determined to find their rhythm and seemed to have found a bit more, winning by double-digit points in each of the next 3 sets. Hannah Cowie, a 3rd year middle for the Knights, led the team with 13 points on 6 kills while also contributing 4 service aces and 3 blocks. The pair of outside hitters, Aja Zambiasi and Kyleigh Baxter, combined for 21 points on 15 kills, 6 services aces and 7 digs. Tia Kelly, the 2nd year setter representing A.N. Myer Secondary School, helped lead the Knights to victory by adding in 26 assists, 2 points and 1 dig.
With the short turn around, the Knights had to be prepared for a challenging encounter against the Shield who were in a 3-team battle for 4th place. The 1st set was tightly contested as neither team could gain a lead larger than 4 points, ultimately seeing the Shield take the first win 32-30. The 2nd set was very similar to the first, with the only exception being the Knights coming out victorious, 26-24. Trading narrow wins in the 3rd and 4th sets with one-another, we saw the match come down to a deciding 5th set. In the 5th set, the Shield came out with an early 2-point lead before having the Knights respond immediately to take back a 2-point lead of their own, ultimately leading to a slim 8-7 lead for Cambrian at the change-over. With the Knights' backs up against the wall and staring at match point for the Shield on the scoreboard, the Knights were able to put a stop to the Cambrian attack and score the final 3 points of the game to secure the 16-14 set victory and 3-2 game win. Sam Cormier stepped up in a huge way for the Knights, contributing 25 points on 21 kills with 5 digs, 4 blocks and 2 assists. Montanna Taylor's on-court leadership was exemplified as she kept her team in the game from start to finish, also providing an astonishing 58 assists, 17 assists, 8 digs, 5 service aces and 5 blocks. Natalie Little, Kyleigh Baxter and Tess Kelly also saw double-digit points in this match, scoring 14, 18 and 13 points respectively.
Head coach of the Knights, Steve Stone, was pleased with his team's performance today stating that the "ladies are locked and ready to compete." Stone continued to say that the "Cambrian game was some really high level of competition and having the ability to come away with a win in those tight matches is so important as we look to the playoffs."
Speaking of the playoffs, your Niagara Knights will be back on their home court as they get set to welcome the 6th place Canadore Panthers (9-9) in the qualifying playoff game next weekend. The game is scheduled to take place at the Simplii Financial Athletic Centre at the Welland Campus on Sunday, February 9th at 1:00pm. Tell your friends and family and bring everyone you can to support your Knights as they start their path to the OCAA Championships.
For more information on the Knights' teams, please visit us at www.goknights.ca.
