By Natasha White, Staff Contributor
There was no prize at stake, but the Tigers Women’s Volleyball team bared their teeth and took a bloody chunk out of the competition last weekend at the inaugural ‘friendly’ Tiger Invitational. The ladies went 3 and 1 against Acadia, SMU, UNB and St.FX, respectively; dropping only 4 sets the entire tourney.
The most impressive performance from the Tigers came Saturday night when they found themselves down 9–21 in the fourth set against UNB. Having taken the second and third sets, it looked like Dal would need a fifth set to take down the Varsity Reds. But a never-say-die effort led by middle Kirstie Sheperd saw the Tigers rally back. Twelve straight service points by Sheperd brought the score to 21 all. With one final push, Dal took the fourth set 25–22, and the match was won.
Weekend stand-outs for the Tigers were Raeesa Lalani and Marlee Powers. Lefty Lalani’s cross-court kills and blocks were major factors in all of Dal’s victories. In an interview after Saturday night’s heroics, Lalani described her play as ‘crafty,’ adding “we’re a young team, but this year the squad is really starting to mesh.”
Lalani and teammate Lauren Smith were chosen as tournament all-stars. Assisting Lalani, Smith and the Tigers was the second-year Powers. Living up to her name, Powers crushed a number of balls to aid in the host team’s showing. Player of the game for Dal on Sunday’s losing effort to St.FX was six-foot hitter Louise Facca. Facca’s violent smashes found hardwood on a number of occasions.
It wasn’t all pretty, though. Every team was subject to major breakdowns in communication. It’s early in the season so chaos and ugly plays are to be expected as teams are trying to find their grooves. Tiger Coach Rick Scott played around with a number of line-up combinations on the weekend. It will be interesting to see the progression of the youthful Tiger squad this season and beyond. Scott’s crew is made up largely of second and third year players, and won’t lose anyone to eligibility for two years.
The weekend crowd at the Dalplex was a thin mix of Tiger supporters and visitor parents. Friday, however, did produce a good turn-out, thanks in part to both the men’s basketball and volleyball teams coming out.
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