HALIFAX, NS - The Saint Mary's Huskies won their sixth straight match, defeating the Memorial Sea-Hawks in straight sets (25-17, 25-21, 25-15) on Friday night at the Homburg Centre.
It was the Sea-Hawks who got off to a solid start, with a kill and service ace by outside hitter Lydia Grawer (St. Louis, MO) putting them in front 2-0. The Huskies came roaring back, and four straight points off the service of Olivia Bell (Lahave, NS) put them in front 14-7.
The Sea-Hawks were able to cut into the lead again thanks to some strong play by setter Karen Greek (Mount Pearl, NL), cutting the Huskies lead to 17-4. That's when the duo of Alena Piatukhova and Emilia Mikanovich (Minsk, Belarus) took over the set, helping the Huskies score seven straight points, before Olivia Bell finished it off with a kill to give the home team a 25-17 first set win.
In the second set, the Sea-Hawks again got off to a strong start, opening up a 7-2 lead, before an epic minute-long rally was finished off by Huskies setter Taylor Lougheed (Calgary, AB).
The Huskies seemed to get momentum from that rally, scoring eight straight points off the service of Mikanovich to open-up a 10-7 lead. Saint Mary's was able to extend the lead to 23-15, but Memorial came back with six straight points, including a pair of aces from libero Shianna Duda (Delburne, AB), to cut the lead to 23-21. A block by Mikanovich finished off the second set, with the Huskies taking it 24-21.
The third set opened up with a pair of aces by Huskies middle Madison Hann (Conquerall Mills, NS) and a monster kill by Mikanovich to give the Huskies an early 3-0 lead.
A nine point service streak by Piatukhova pushed the Huskies lead to 16-4. The Huskies showed off some depth in the third set with outside hitters Sydney Fader (Dartmouth, NS) and Kala Bruhm (Hubley, NS), setter Olivia Kokkinen (Uxbridge, ON) and middles Jessie Buck (Severn, ON) and Paige Deering (Calgary,AB) making an impact off the bench.
It was a Fader kill, followed by a Sea-Hawks error that would finish off the match, with the Huskies taking the third set 25-15.
Huskies setter Taylor Lougheed was named Subway Player of the Game, getting everyone involved offensively with a game-high 18 assists, and added three service aces, three kills and three digs.Olivia Bell chipped in a game-high nine kills and four digs, while Mikanovich led the team in digs with 17, and added four service aces and four kills.
The Sea-Hawks were led by outside hitter Kamryn Sanger (Grand Falls, NL) with six kills, three digs, two assists and one service ace, while setter Karen Greek (Mount Pearl, NL) chipped in 16 assists, two service aces, two kills and one dig.
In the second game of the series, the Saint Mary's Huskies defeated the Memorial Sea-Hawks in straight sets (25-20, 25-19, 25-13) on Saturday afternoon at the Homburg Centre.
The start of the first set saw both teams drawing even on points, however, it would be the Huskies who would surge ahead, led by service aces from Taylor Lougheed (Calgary, AB), putting them in front 10-4. The Huskies would continue their leading surge, led by a kill fromAlena Piatukhova (Minsk, Belarus) and a service ace from Megan Bruhm (Hubley, NS), to extend their lead to 17-19.
The Sea-Hawks made a late comeback in the set, seeing them close in with kills from Maria Moores (Conception Bay, NL) and Lydia Grawer (St. Louis, MO), however it would not be enough as the Huskies closed out the set with kills by Emilia Mikanovich (Minsk, Belarus),winning 25-20.
In the second set, the Huskies started strong, however, with Huskies communication and attack errors the Sea-Hawks took advantage of the momentum. However, it would not be long before the Huskies got into a rhythm with kills from Olivia Bell (Lahave, NS), and Bruhm saw the Huskies jump out to a 14-8 set lead.
The Sea-Hawks made a valiant effort to close the gap with kills from Grawer, Courtney Hodder (Main Point, NL), and Emily Batt (Grande Prairie, AB). However, the Huskies would capitalize on kills by Bruhm and Mikanovich and a service ace by Piatukhova, closing out the second set 25-19.
The third set opened up early, with both teams trading service and attack errors. With the Sea-Hawks taking a time-out, resumed play saw the Huskies come out settled and focused with kills from Bell and Bruhm and a block by Lougheed, putting them ahead 9-4.
The Sea-Hawks didn't waiver and stayed strong with a service ace from Halle Wirth (Winnipeg,MB) and a kill from Grawer pulling them within a few at 13-8, still searching for the lead.
The Huskies stayed strong scoring four points in a row with kills from Piatukhova pulling them up to 18-9. The Sea-Hawks looked to stay in the game with a service ace from Hodder. However,the Huskies offense stayed strong with service aces from Mikanovich and kills from Paige Deering (Calgary, AB) and Bruhm pulling in the set win for the Huskies 25-13.
Huskies middle Madison Hann (Conquerall Mills, NS) was named Subway Player of the Game, being an offensive presence with three kills, four assists, and two digs on the match.
It was a true team offensive effort in the match, with Megan Bruhm leading the team with eight kills and five digs, and Taylor Lougheed leading the team with 16 assists and six service aces.Emilia Mikanovich was also a dominant presence for the Huskies, with six kills, six service aces,and three digs.
Lydia Grawer led the Sea-Hawks with eight kills, two service aces, and two digs, Courtney Hodder with five kills, and Karen Greek (Mount Pearl, NL), had two kills, 17 assists, four service aces, and four digs.
In the final game of the series, the Saint Mary's Huskies won their eighth straight match, defeating the Memorial Sea-Hawks (25-17, 25-19, 22-25, 25-23) on Sunday afternoon.
The first set saw both teams starting strong, with the Sea-Hawks claiming the first point with a kill by Nella Woelfel (St. John's NL). The Sea-Hawks would capitalize on attack errors made by the Huskies and a kill by Lydia Grawer (St. Louis, MO), propelling them forward. The Huskies, however, after a long rally that saw Emilia Mikanovich (Minsk, Belarus) hammer home a point, saw the Huskies gain momentum, pulling ahead to a 10-7 lead.
The Sea-Hawks continued to stay close to the Huskies with a kill from Woelfel and a block by Janeen Pellat (Yorkton, SK). However, the Huskies didn't waiver as kills by Mikanovich, and Megan Bruhm (Hubley, NS) saw them close in on winning the set leading 21-15. The Sea-Hawks would close out the match on several errors, seeing the Huskies win the set 25-17.
The start of the second set saw the Huskies come out swinging, with a kill from Bruhm, a block from Alena Piatukhova (Minsk, Belarus), and a service ace from Madison Hann (Conqueral Mills, NS), seeing the huskies jump out to a 7-1 lead.
However, the Sea-Hawks fought their way back into the set with kills by Erica Rafuse (Kingston, ON),Claire Whiffen (St. John's, NL), and Woelfel closing in on the Huskies lead 11-7.
The Huskies offense would continue to stay steady with a kill by Olivia Bell (Lahave, NS) dig by Bruhm. A block by Hann saw them win the second set 25-19, with a valiant effort from the Sea-Hawks offense, with a service ace from Shianna Duda (Delburne, AB) pulled them within a few of the Huskies.
The third set saw the Sea-Hawks jump out to an 8-3 lead, with kills and service ace from Grawer, and a kill by Emily Batt (Grande Prairie, AB), leading the Sea-Hawks offensive charge.
The Huskies Emilia Mikanovich would tie up the set for the Huskies 13-13 with her hard-to-handle serve. However, the Sea-Hawks would respond with kills from Grawer and service aces from Batt and Duda, forcing the Huskies to take a time-out as the Sea-Hawks led 17-13.
When play resumed, the Sea-Hawks offense remained ignited as a kill from Woelfel and a block from Pellat saw the Sea-Hawks win the third set 25-22.
While the Sea-Hawks jumped out to an early fourth set lead, the Huskies dialed it in and, with a kill from Bell and service aces from Mikanovich, tied up the fourth set 5-5.
As the fourth set continued, it was a hard-fought battle that saw the Huskies pull out to a 14-10 lead from kills by Piatukhova and Taylor Lougheed (Uxbridge, ON).
While the Sea-Hawks continued to make their presence known, the Huskies offense found their rhythm led by Mikanovich closing in on the set win leading 21-19.
The Sea-Hawks forged ahead and were led by Rafuse, Woelfell, and Kamryn Sanger (Grand Falls, NL), as they tied the set up at 23-23. The Huskies offense stood firm and won the fourth set 25-23, winning the match.
Huskies Left Side Emilia Mikanovich was named Subway Player of the game with 17 kills, four service aces, and 13 digs.
It was a defensive team effort that saw Megan Bruhm leading the team with 20 digs, ten kills, and a service ace, and Taylor Lougheed leading the team with 36 assists, two kills, and six digs.
Lydia Grawer led the Sea-Hawks with 15 kills, 11 digs, and one service ace, and Nella Woelfel had ten kills, 11 digs, and two assists. Erin Grabka, who played her last AUS game, had 16 digs and seven assists.
This series closed out the season for the Sea-Hawks, and they now begin their off-season preparation as they get set to make their mark in September!
Recap by Allan April and Alyson Duffy / Saint Mary's Huskies Athletics