Tigers keep roaring, win five in a row

Have you heard about Dalhousie’s women’s volleyball team? Yeah, they’re playing pretty well these days.

The Tigers beat the St. FX X-Women in front of a packed home crowd Feb. 5 in straight sets to extend their winning streak to five games.

The victory keeps Dal’s team placed in second in the AUS, two points ahead of the challenging Cape Breton Capers. The 12 – 3 Tigers will hope to add two more victories to their record this weekend before the regular season draws to a close.

Dal rookie Maggie Li was an obvious choice for player of the game. She led the way with 12 kills and a hitting percentage of .429.

“Maggie has been a key reason why we have kept this winning streak going,” said captain Kristie Sheppard.

Head coach Rick Scott agrees. “[Maggie] has a real strong presence at the net,” he said. “Her play has been really solid over the past five games.”

The main reason why the Tigers are having success on the floor is because they are playing as a team. There is always high energy to their game and their communication is phenomenal.

Even though the game was won in three straight sets, it didn’t come easily. The Tigers were down by five in the first set until Scott called a timeout to get his ladies under control. Dal came back to win that set 25 – 21.

Both teams went through an all-out battle to win the second set. The Tigers had a 21 – 14 lead at one point, but the X-Women’s Katherine Ryan led her team back, tying the game up. Both teams continued to go point-for-point during numerous long rallies, but the Tigers came out on top in the end, winning the set 30 – 28.

Scott thought they were lucky to pull off a win in that set.

“We weren’t playing very well,” Scott said. “We hung in there, battled and didn’t give up.”

The Tigers showed the X-Women how to complete a comeback during the third set. Dal trailed throughout the whole frame, and at one point were down 23 – 18. They were able to get seven straight points, however, to complete the sweep and win the set 25 – 23.

Hilary Sears also had a great game for the Tigers. She had a .500 hitting percentage and 28 assists in the win.

The Tigers are hoping to extend their winning streak to six games Feb. 10 at 6 p.m. when they take on the dismal 1 – 14 UNB Varsity Reds at home. They also have a big season-ending game the next day at 12 p.m. against Cape Breton that will likely determine whether Dal finishes in second or third in the league.