TORONTO — The Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) Bold men's volleyball team defeated the Royal Military College (RMC) Paladins 3-1 (25-21, 18-25, 25-18, 25-16) on Friday. 

TMU improved to 4-15 with the victory. While the season has produced more lessons than wins, solace can be found in the fact that the Bold are authoring a strong closing chapter to what has been a rebuilding type of year. 

After dispatching the Paladins, the Bold have won two of their last three home games. 

"It feels good, especially to get different guys out there," said Bold Head coach Niko Rukavina. "We definitely still have stuff to work on but I was happy with the win." 

Riley Donovan led the way for TMU with 18 kills, while rookie William Gimbert finished with 16. 

Donovan played an integral role in the Bold's quick starts in sets one, three, and four. It's not a coincidence that TMU ended up winning all three of those contests. Donovan entered the night leading the team in kills with 165. 

Senior Bobby Tang was inserted early in the game and immediately produced a kill during an extended rally to give the Bold a 12-9 lead in the opening frame. Tang finished with three points, one shy of his season-high. 

Fellow senior Gavin Elzinga came off the bench in the second set and also recorded a kill during the ensuing rally. Elzinga finished with nine total attempts, tied for the third-highest on the team. 

In what was the penultimate game of their OUA career, it was one of the final chances for storied members of the team to make their mark at the Mattamy Athletic Centre. Elzinga ultimately started the final two sets that sealed the victory.

"I see a lot of athletes come through this program," said Rukavina. "It's important to enjoy the moment and relish in it a little bit."

Outside of dropping the second set, the Bold's biggest scare came late in set three. TMU were stuck at 18 points for several rallies until Declan Dunn's huge block gave his team some breathing room at 19-16. Dunn's 12 blocks are the fifth most on the team. 

The Bold would subsequently carry their momentum into the fourth set. An early 10-5 lead forced RMC to call a timeout, but TMU didn't look back until the final point. 

"We still have to level up a little from today and clean up some of the edges," said Rukavina. "Then we're honouring our graduating players tomorrow."

TMU's season finale celebration against the RMC Paladins takes place on Feb. 7 at 5:30 p.m. on OUA.tv. Students can attend for free with their OneCards.