Volleyball Queens edged by Clippers on the road

Brent Forster - RDC

The RDC Queens knew that it would be a challenge facing the first place Briercrest College Clippers on Friday evening in Saskatchewan, but the Queens pushed the Clippers to the limit. RDC started well but Briercrest College gained some momentum and capped off the match in five sets.

The RDC Queens jumped ahead by two sets 25-18 and 25-22. Briercrest College took the final three sets 25-23, 25-20 and 15-12 for their fifteenth match victory in a row.

Miranda Dawe led the Queens with 13 kills. The Kinesiology & Sport Studies student added 5 digs, 2 stuff blocks and 1 assist. McKenna Barthel contributed 11 kills, 1 service ace, 4 digs and 1 stuff block. Setter Chanelle Kayser totaled 27 assists, 4 digs, 2 stuff blocks and 1 kill. As a team, the RDC Queens had 6 service aces. Megan Schmidt and Hanna Delemont recorded 2 each.

Samantha Zacharias was the Clippers' offensive leader with 22 kills.

Queens Volleyball Head Coach Chris Wandler liked the Queens' ability to follow the plan in a very close match. "We expected it to be a battle and I thought that we executed our game plan quite well tonight," said Wandler. "It was anyone's game and it came down to a couple of points."

Wandler identified several strong performances. "Naomi Jardine came into the match as a sub and she stabilized our passing and defence," said Wandler. "McKenna Barthel and Miranda Dawe played well and they both were a strong presence at the net." Jardine, a Bachelor of Education student, picked up 3 digs and 1 stuff block.

In the rematch on Saturday, Wandler wants the Queens show a strong desire to execute. "Tomorrow, we will have to bring the same 'I want it' effort," said Wandler.

The second place Queens (13-4) will look to rebound against the first place Clippers (16-1) on the road, Saturday, January 20 at 1:00 p.m.