Tigers comeback to beat Moncton

Player of the game Louise Facca punches the ball past Moncton's blockers. Photo by Pau Balite

Following a midseason slump which saw the Tigers drop three straight, Dalhousie’s women’s volleyball team is back on track.

After losing the first set against the Aigles Bleus 25 – 21, the Tigers were able to rally back and win the next three sets for a 3 – 1 victory Jan. 22. The win, Dal’s second in a row, temporarily moves the Tigers past Cape Breton into second place in the AUS standings.

Their win over Moncton was the Tigers’ only game this past weekend. Their home game against Acadia two days before was cancelled due to inclement weather. The two combatants already completed their rescheduled match Jan. 25.

Conference first team all-star Louise Facca was named player of the game with 20 kills, 48 total attempts and a .208 hitting percentage.

“I think we were able to put our serves and serves received together and keep the energy high. We came together as a team,” she said.

The comeback started with five strong serves from Raeesa Lalani in the second set. Dal continued to serve and pass well throughout the frame, and wound up winning 25 – 15 to tie the match.

Captain Kristie Shepherd provided the leadership, helping the team rally back in the last three sets. Shepherd said the Tigers simply had to follow their game plan.

“We wanted to serve and pass consistently, to close blocks and slow down their fast offence,” she said.

The women were down 14 – 7 at one point in the fourth set but rallied for a six-point streak to narrow the gap. They pulled off an impressive 25 – 17 string to finish the match off in fashion.

Tigers head coach Rick Scott was pleased with his team’s overall effort.

“There was some good veteran leadership,” said Scott. “We knew we didn’t play our best set [in the first], but we just got back to doing what we needed to do to win through serving, passing and good defense.”

Tarah-Lynn Truant was on the floor late in the fourth set to help the Tigers complete the comeback, a contribution that didn’t go unnoticed.

“It’s not an easy thing to do to come off the bench and play the way that she did,” Scott said.

This was the Tigers’ second win over the now 3 – 9 Aigles Bleus this season. Dal is on the road this weekend as they head to The Tower to play the league-leading Saint Mary’s Jan. 29 at 2 p.m.