LONDON, Ont. – The hard work was done. The Guelph Gryphons men's volleyball team has already booked a date in the OUA postseason so it was time to enjoy a night without any pressure. The Gryphons will now turn their attention to playoff volleyball after ending the regular season with a 3-0 loss (20-25, 22-25, and 18-25) to the Western Mustangs Saturday night in London.
 
Guelph never really got its offence flowing against the Mustangs but did get a chance to rest some regulars and secure some time for players farther down the depth chart. Oliver Hissink led the team with 8 kills and 5 digs, while Aidan Hayter paced the Gryphons with 13 assists. Eric Wilson also made an impression with some solid play.
 
Western jumped out to a comfortable 1-0 lead but had to battle to take the second with Guelph within striking distance at 21-19 for the Mustangs. It was tight again in the third at 9-9 but the hosts produced an 8-2 run to pull away and earn the straight-set win.
 
The Gryphons hit .120 on the night, while Western came in at .242 with 42 kills compared to 28 for the visitors.
 
Guelph will now prepare for the OUA East-leading Queen's Gaels, who fell to the Gryphons in a 3-1 upset at the GGAC back on Jan. 18.
 
 
Gryphon Take
"We let many of the guys who have trained hard all season get a chance to play tonight Having clinche the playoff spot, the outcome of this game carried no significance. It was an opportunity for us to rest some of our starters, as well. We saw a great effort from Oliver and it was good to see some nice plays from Eric that fired up our bench." – head coach Cal Wigston
 
 
The Record
Guelph is 8-9.
 
 
Next up
OUA quarter-finals @ Queen's, Saturday, March 2