Tigers sweep Reds to advance to AUS final series versus Saint Mary's

(HALIFAX, N.S.) The Dalhousie Tigers defeated the UNB Reds 3-1 (25-19, 21-25, 28-26, 25-17) in the second and final match of the best-of-three semifinal series of the 2020 Subway AUS Women's Volleyball Playoffs Friday night in Halifax, N.S. 

The Tigers got off to a 4-1 start to begin the first set. UNB battled back quickly due in large part to a strong serving run by Victoria Eadle (Gallagher Ridge, N.B.) and some unforced Tigers errors to lead 7-5. Dalhousie slowly started to pull away from UNB and were leading 16-11 at the technical timeout.  The Tigers continued to distance themselves from the Reds and took the first set 25-19. 

It was a seesaw battle in the second set with both teams trading points. It was the Reds who were leading at the technical time out in the second set, up 16-13. They continued to put pressure on the Tigers, increasing their lead to four and closed out the second set 25-21. 

The third set started off just like the second with both teams trading leads. UNB led 16-13 at the technical timeout, but three consecutive kills from Julie Moore (Halifax, N.S.) brought the Tigers back and put them in the lead, up 19-17. Extra points were needed to settle the fourth set with the Tigers taking the win 28-26 Victoria Haworth (Waverley, N.S.) sealed the deal with two consecutive service aces.  

Once again, both teams came out pretty evenly matched to start the fourth set. The Tigers were up 16-10 at the technical time out and came back out on the court with a renewed energy and took the fourth and final set 25-17 to win the semifinal series 2-0. 

Moore had a match-high 17 kills and earned Subway Player of the Game honours. She also had a team-high 21 digs and had two service aces for a total of 18.5 points. Haworth and Victoria Turcot (Halifax, NS) had eight kills apiece, while Courtney Baker (Bridgewater, N.S.) had 36 assists and 11 digs in the effort. 

Eadle led the way for the Reds with 12 kills and a match-high 27 digs. Defence was a highlight for UNB with Kristen Burns (Mississauga, Ont.), Adora Rooyakkers and Catherine Burns (Fredericton, N.B.) contributing 18, 17 and 10 kills apiece, respectively. 

As the number one seed at the end of the regular season, the Tigers will now host the Saint Mary's Huskies in the 2020 Subway AUS Women's Volleyball Championship final series. Saint Mary's defeated the Acadia Axweomen 2-0 in the other semifinal series. Games will take place Thursday, Feb. 27, Friday, Feb. 28 and Saturday, Feb. 29 (if necessary). All games will start at 7 p.m. and will be televised on Bell Alian't Fibe TV1 and webast live at AUStv.ca.

Source: Dalhousie Athletics Communications