TORONTO – The Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) Bold women's volleyball squad were unable to find their killer instinct on Friday and paid the price for it in a straight-set defeat to the Guelph Gryphons (26-24, 25-21, 25-22).
The Bold managed to build leads in all three sets but failed to bury the Gryphons while on the front foot. The issue was exposed by the Gryphons in the match's early stages as TMU held three separate leads throughout the first set alone before the visitors (trailing 23-20) finally rang off a timely 6-1 run to take the opener.
That trend continued in the third with the Bold leading the Gryphons 11-9 while facing a 2-0 deficit in the match. Four-consecutive attacking errors from the home side gifted Guelph a 13-10 advantage that quickly grew into a six-point cushion and eventual 25-22 set victory from the visitors to close out the match.
First-year Rian Lenarduzzi drew into the contest in the middle frame and believes the Bold could have taken the role of the aggressor more often than they had in the defeat.
"I think we're trying to find ourselves," said Lenarduzzi following the loss. "We're not always being as aggressive as we could be. I think the group is really skilled and talented but sometimes we hold back in the moments that we really need to seize," she added.
Lenarduzzi's teammates Kaiya Krahn and Scarlett Gingera paced the Bold with five kills each in a contest that featured 10 hitters striking the Gryphon's side of the court.
TMU's hitting depth failed to keep up with Guelph's however, one that featured three different hitters surpass eight kills despite the group collectively amassing a meager .155 hitting percentage. Lexi Nicholson-Clarke led the charge with 13 kills and three blocks.
In addition to smelling, and later capitalizing when they saw blood in the water, Guelph's versatility on attack helped the team push the Bold to the brink of elimination with a 25-21 victory in the second set.
Five separate hitters picked up at least a kill in the middle frame, a feature that helped snuff out a late 5-0 run from the Bold (their longest of the set) and keep Guelph in control.
Now losers in eight straight, the Bold face an uphill battle to get their name in the OUA's postseason picture.
The group will have to come out on top of their opponent in the majority of their remaining matches at the very least, something Lenarduzzi feels the team is more than capable of doing approaching the final stretch of the campaign.
"We have to take care of our side, control what we can control and not be afraid of losing. We literally have nothing to lose at this point."
TMU will get their chance to avenge the Gryphons on Saturday afternoon. First serve from the Mattamy Athletic Centre (MAC) flies at 1 p.m. Students can attend for free with their OneCard.
