By: Samantha Brazeau-Wilson
City rivals clashed and emotions ran high as the Thunder men’s volleyball team dominated against the La Cité Coyotes on Nov. 21.
The Thunder came out on top, taking the match 3-0 with good offence and defence throughout the entire game. Consistent scoring was also a factor in the win.
The team was much stronger on this night compared to their previous games and limited their unforced errors which was just one of many improvements from their games Nov. 16 and 17.
“There was definitely urgency on our part,” said Thunder head coach Jay Mooney. “The slow start [last weekend] definitely had an impact on our game tonight.”
The Thunder had a great first set as they picked up momentum with a five point streak which led to a 25-16 win. The Thunder came out firing as they dominated early on in the set, owning the game offensively to give themselves an early lead. Their offensive prowess carried on throughout the first set, as they won 25-16.
Both teams were up and down on the scoreboard and emotions began to boil over as Algonquin pulled away, keeping the Coyotes from gaining any life. After a Thunder point, the team celebrated emphatically at the net in front of the La Cité players for which both teams were given a warning.
After the Coyotes won the next point, they disregarded the ref’s warning by celebrating at the net and were given a card as a result. The card hurt the Coyotes’ chances of gaining momentum as the Thunder were given the ball back and awarded a point en route to a 25-15 set win.
“When someone does something on the other side to out intense us we’re going to answer back and it’s a fun a way to play,” said left side Alex Oneid.
Early on in the third set, an intense sequence which saw a great dig by the Thunder was finished off with one of their 11 blocks in the game. The block seemed to give more energy to the Thunder which they used to win the set and the match with a 25-15 score.
“Blocking is something that we’ve been keying on in practice over the last couple of weeks,” said Mooney. “Seeing [that] translate into a game situation is very important.”
With a slow start in the season, Mooney felt like there was some urgency coming into the game. Knowing playoff spots are tough to get, the Thunder’s full effort will be put into winning for the rest of the semester.
“In a league with a 20 game season, three losses kind of puts us on the outside looking in,” said team captain, Ian McAlpine. “We have to do everything we can to make sure we win every game from now on.”