Huskies Drop REDS

(HALIFAX, NS) The Saint Mary's Huskies held off the UNB REDS 3-1 in a tightly contested Atlantic University Sport women's volleyball match on Saturday.

The Huskies won their fifth straight match with scores of 26-24, 25-16, 20-25, and 25-19.

"We definitely competed a lot harder today," said REDS' head coach Richard Schick. "We pushed through some tough moments. It's unfortunate that we let a first set lead slip, but it was encouraging to see how hard we battled in set three to force the fourth."

The first set was a tight fight, with both teams showing strong offensive play. The REDS pulled out to a 10-5 lead. After a service ace from Heather Benko (Sechelt, BC), the Huskies called a timeout. When the set resumed, the Huskies came out strong with kills from Megan Bruhm (Hubley, NS) and Olivia Bell (Lahave, NS) to close in on the lead.

With the Huskies closing in, the UNB REDS took a time out. When play resumed, the Huskies kept their strong offense tying the set at 18-18. With a beautiful block by Taylor Lougheed (Calgary, AB) and a great attack from Emilia Mikanovich (Minsk, Belarus), the Huskies won the set 26-24.

The second set saw a back-and-forth battle as both teams' defense was there to answer. With the Huskies pulling away, the REDS called a timeout.  

On the restart, the UNB offense started to close the gap with a block from Bailey Lemieux (Fredericton, NB) and a kill from Jenna Adams (Truro, NS). However, with statement kills from Mikanovich and Bell gave the Huskies an 18-14 lead and the Huskies took the set 25-16.

The third set started with each team trading points as they looked to take the lead. Key blocks saw the Huskies pull away to a 10-6 lead before the REDS called timeout.

Back in action, the set saw both teams continue to battle, and with kills from Benko, Adams, and Lemieux the REDS were closing the gap. The Huskies kept the pressure on with a well-placed floater from Bell to keep the Huskies in the lead at 18-15.

The REDS tied the set 19-19 with kills from Benko and a block from Paige Lehto (North Vancouver, BC), forcing the Huskies to take a timeout. The timeout didn't stop the REDS momentum as they broke away to take the lead 23-19 with blocks from Lemieux, Lehto, and a service ace from Adams. UNB sealed the win on bad sets from the Huskies, winning the third set 25-20.

The fourth set saw the Huskies pull out to an early lead, but with a few attack errors, the REDS were able to hold it close. After a very long rally the Huskies led 14-7. As the set progressed, the back-and-forth battle continued, but big kills from Bruhm saw the Huskies win the set 25-19, giving them a 3-1 win. 

Bruhm was named Subway Player of the Game with 11 kills and 21 digs. Mikanovich had a team-high 18 kills and added 16 digs.

Katelyn Chapman led the REDS with 19 digs while Benko had 15 kills.

"We battled at times, but still have a lot to give for us to reach our next level of play," said Lemieux.

The Huskies win improves their record to 11-4. They'll be back in action Friday, hosting Memorial.

The UNB loss drops their record to 8-9. The REDS will be back in action on home court Friday, hosting Acadia at 6:00pm.

RECAP AND PHOTOS: SMU Athletics