MEN'S VOLLEYBALL – Gryphons sweep weekend

GUELPH, Ont. - The Guelph Gryphons men's volleyball team took out the RMC Paladins 3-0 tonight (Nov. 12) in Guelph at the W.F. Mitchell Centre. The Gryphons dominated the court en route to set scores of 25-15, 25-19, and 25-21.
 
The Gryphons add their second win this weekend at home with a 5-1 record, while the Paladins drop 6-0. The Gryphons are now tied with Western in first in the OUA with 10 total points.
 
Set one was an easy win for the Gryphons after building a significant lead right from the start. Winston Rosser (Whitby, ON) and Drew Whitaker (Sharon, ON) both contributed to a Gryphon offensive attack. The Paladins struggled with control on the court, and poor communication led to some unnecessary errors that didn't help their deficit reaching 10 points apart. Guelph subbed in rookie Connor Cressman (Waterloo, ON) who won an ace on his first serve. RMC started putting up some resistance near the end of the set after winning two challenging rallies between the two teams, but it wasn't enough to close the gap. The set finished 25-13.
 
The Paladins came into the second set with more confidence and built a small lead ahead of the Gryphons with help from right side Tyler Leknois (Blainville, QC) and his attacks. Guelph rookies Phillip Wessel (Cambridge, ON) and Kevin McCallum (Toronto, ON) helped the Gryphons over-come the Paladins early success. Despite the Paladins determination in returning Gryphon attacks, they weren't able to get past Guelph's defence and the Gryphons took the set 25-19.
 
With a solid lead, the Gryphons gave a number of rookies court time in the third. RMC had difficulty starting up and suffered two consecutive set errors due to miscommunication on the court, but soon pulled it together and started adding points to the board. Whitaker however helped to keep the Gryphons afloat as the Paladins began to build points. Leknois continued to wreak havoc for the Gryphons and the Paladins were trailing only a point behind Guelph for much of the set. Rosser took control in the final minutes, and he finished the game with an ace against the Paladins. The set finished 25-21.
 
The Gryphons were led by Whitaker and Rosser who were tied with 14 total points. Whitaker contributed 12 kills, 2 aces, and 3 digs, while Rosser managed 8 kills, 5 aces, and 2 digs. The Paladins were led by Leknois with 10 kills and 1 dig.
 
The Gryphons go on the road for their next match on Nov 25^th in Windsor against the Lancers. The game begins at 8pm.