Lakers golden at Nipissing Invitational

The Nipissing University men’s squad captured the 2005 Lakers Invitational Volleyball Tournament with a 3-0 (25-17, 25-20, 25-12) victory over La Cite Collegiale.

In round robin play, the Lakers defeated Canadore 2-0, Cambrian 2-0, Boreal 2-1 while losing 2-1 to La Cite. According to head coach Duane Culin the teams play was inconsistent throughout the day.

“It was almost like coaching two different teams and we were never sure which team would show up,” said Culin.

“At times we would show moments of greatness playing with intensity and showing great team chemistry; other times players were missing their assignments, making mental mistakes and looking like it was the first time they stepped on the court.

“This tournament however was a great opportunity to get some much needed matches under our belts and to try some different rotations before returning to regular season play.

“Our team has been working very hard on conditioning and it definitely showed this weekend. In the final match of the day, they looked just as strong as they did in the morning. We played very well in the final and the guys should be proud of their performance. La Cite could be a potential cross over match in order to qualify for the provincial championships so it’s a great confidence booster to know that if we play well, we will be hard to beat,” added Culin.

The Lakers setter Connor Edie was named a tournament all star while left side Seamus Strutt was named the Player of the game as well as the tournament co-MVP with La Cite’s Christian Lebel.

LADY LAKERS CLAIM SILVER AT CAMBRIAN INVITAIONAL

SUDBURY, ON – The Lady Lakers finished second at the Cambrian College Invitation volleyball tournament this weekend falling to the number one ranked Humber Hawks 2-0.

In the final match the Lady Lakers got off to a sluggish start and were never able to recover as the Hawks rolled over the Lakers 25-13. In the second set the Lakers passing was ineffective at the start of the match allowing Humber to gain some momentum early but the Lakers did settle down half way through the match and manage to close the gap however Humber played side out volleyball and took the second set 25-20.

“We really did not play up to our capabilities in the final match,” said head coach Marc LaRochelle.

“Our passing was very poor in this match and we were not able to use our speed to our advantage. We did not play with the same intensity and passion that we showed against them (Humber) in the round robin or the semi-finals against Cambrian and it showed in the results.

“Overall this was a great tournament for us. We were able to give all the players some valuable court experience and the caliber of our opponents was very good. We played a very good semi-final match against Cambrian and we will learn from our mistakes and continue to work to get better as the season progresses.

"In practice we will be making some defensive adjustments and continue to work on our passing in order to be ready for our next league game.”

The Lady Lakers swept Canadore, Boreal and the Sault 2-0 in round robin play while losing to Cambrian and Humber 2-0. The Lakers finished in third place setting up a re-match against Cambrian College and the Lakers came out with a spirited match and swept the Golden Shields 25-21, 25-20 to get to finals.

Both teams will be back in action on Saturday as the women’s match will feature two undefeated teams as both the Lakers and Falcons sit at 4-0 on the season. The men’s match will see the 2-1 Lakers face the 3-1 Falcons.
The women play at 12 followed by the men at 2 p.m. at the Surtees gym.

Submitted to BayToday.ca