The Ryerson Rams women’s volleyball team suffered a narrow defeat to the Queen’s University Gaels at the Mattamy Athletic Centre Friday night.
Ryerson lost the first and third sets but dominated the second and fourth. It was a close match, with both teams see-sawing for the lead before the Rams ultimately lost 3-2 (30-32, 25-16, 25-27, 25-16, 12-15).
The Rams started the final set well, up 8-1 before the Gaels turned their luck around and came back to win the set 15-12 after a number of harrowing rallies.
The Rams might have sealed a win, but they lost Veronica Livingston in the final set after she suffered a leg injury. Head coach Dustin Reid was unsure of the extent of the injury.
Despite the loss, Emily Nicholishen, Kristine Yan and Kristina Vlcek shined, with 18 and 14 kills respectively.
Still, Reid said he was disappointed by the result.
“We played a really strong match,” he said. “Unfortunately, we didn’t finish off sets very well. In each of the three that we lost, we had a chance to win them and we didn’t play our best when it mattered.”
The match was the first home game for Emily Betteridge, a recent transfer from Syracuse University. She hit 10 kills, the fourth highest in the contest.
“It’s been a long transition because I had to wait it out but it’s been great,” she said. “The girls have been so comforting. They’ve helped me through the process.”
She added, “There was a lot of build-up towards my start at [University of Toronto], so coming into the game tonight, it was more relaxing.”
With the loss, the Rams are now at 5-4. They try to get back in the win column Saturday against Royal Military College of Canada at the Mattamy Athletic Centre.
Stefan graduated from the Ryerson School of Journalism in 2015.