October 26, 2005 Source: Nipissing University:
http://www.nipissingu.ca/news/view.asp?ID=48 Lady Lakers claim Bronze at Sheridan Invitational OAKVILLE - ON - The Nipissing University Lady Lakers were in action at the Sheridan Paw Power Invitational tournament over the weekend. The Lakers came out strong Friday night as they swept a pair of games against Durham College (25-13, 25-13) and Loyalist (25-13, 25-12). Saturday, the Lakers finished the round robin by sweeping Algonquin (25-7, 25-18) and the University of Toronto Mississauga club team (25-12, 25-10). The first place finish gave the Lady Lakers a bye to the quarter finals. The Lakers came out strong and executed well as they powered by Sheridan 2-0 (25-9, 25-9). The Lakers were in tough in the semi finals as Mohawk’s defence and execution proved to be the difference as the Mountaineers swept the Lakers 2-0 (25-23, 25-12). The Lady Lakers rebounded from their previous match and made quick work of Niagara sweeping them 2-0 (25-11, 25-17) to claim the Bronze medal. "Overall, we played a great tournament," said head coach Marc LaRochelle. "We only had one match in which we did not play up to our capabilities and unfortunetely it was during the semi finals. Mohawk executed well and we simply made too many unforced errors. To the team's credit, they re-focused and played a very strong match against a good Niagara team. We now understand that we must strive for consistency every time we step on the court if we are to achieve our team goals." DURHAM CUP OSHAWA, ON – The Nipissing men’s volleyball squad put in a solid effort at the Durham Cup as they beat the Niagara Knights 2-1 (23-25, 25-19, 15-11) to finish 7th with a record of 4 wins 2 losses. In round robin play the Lakers played a solid match against a strong Mohawk team and split the sets (25-23, 22-25). The Lakers then swept Loyalist and Sir Sanford Fleming, and split with Humber (25-19, 22-25). The Lakers were swept 2-0 by Algonquin to complete the round robin. The tournament was hotly contested and this was evident as the Lakers semi-final hopes were dashed from a one set let down and instead played for a 7th place finish. "I think we had a pretty strong showing especially for our first tournament," said head coach Duane Culin. "This tournament showcased most of the top talent in the OCAA and we proved that we can not only compete, but come out on top against the league's top contenders. We were in a very competitive pool and one set was the difference in playing for a birth of the finals or playing for 7th place." "I believe this weekend was a great confidence booster and all players played very well. Thomas Cook led the team in stuff blocks and first year setter Connor Edie distributed the ball very well all weekend." added Culin.
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