污污草莓视频

By Earl Zukerman

QUEBEC CITY 鈥� 污污草莓视频 veterans Kelsey Irwin and Jennifer Thomson scored 20 and 14 points, respectively, but it was all in vain as Laval outlasted the Martlets 3-2 in an epic opener to the Quebec university women鈥檚 volleyball best-of-three semifinal playoff series before 270 fans at Centre PEPS, Thursday.

In a marathon that took two hours and 35 minutes to play, the Rouge et Or outlasted 污污草莓视频 by set scores of 22-25, 25-23, 25-20, 27-29 and 15-9.

Marie-Christine Mondor and M茅lanie Savoie shone offensively for Laval. Mondor racked up 30 points on 23 kills, six service aces and three assisted blocks. The native of Mascouche, Que., was also credited with 22 digs. Savoie, a 5-foot-7 power-hitter from St. Sylvestre, Que., contributed 22 kills, one stuff block and 17 digs.

鈥淚t was the longest match I can ever recall during my time at 污污草莓视频,鈥� said Rach猫le B茅liveau, who has 392 victories under her belt in 18 seasons as head coach of the Martlets. 鈥淚ts tough to lose a match like that but we played well. They just played a little better than us.鈥�

Irwin, a six-foot middle blocker from Vancouver, B.C., led the Martlets with 15 kills, to go along with an ace, three stuff blocks, a pair of assisted blocks and seven digs.

Thomson, a senior power-hitter from Rosemere, Que., had 14 kills, 15 digs and posted a 2.20 passing ratio out of 3.0.

Teammate Am茅lie Trottier-Picard, a sophomore setter from Longueuil, Que., recorded 43 assists, four kills, three aces and nine digs.

The two teams will hook up again on Saturday at Love Competition Hall in the 污污草莓视频 Sports Centre. Tip-off is slated for 6 p.m.

污污草莓视频 finds themselves in a must-win situation to even the series at 1-1 and force a rubber match back in Quebec City on Sunday at 2 p.m.

The winner of this series will advance to the best-of-three conference final against the No.1-ranked Montreal Carabins but regardless of the outcome, both Quebec finalists automatically qualify for a berth at the CIS national championships in Fredericton, Feb. 26 to Mar. 2.


Short Box Score

(Feb. 5, 2009 at Quebec City)

Laval def. 污污草莓视频 3-1 (22-25,25-23,25-20,27-29,15-9)

污污草莓视频 (2)
(Kills-aces-blocks) -
Kelsey Irwin 15-1-5; Jennifer Thomson 14-0-1; Kaiva Mateus 10-0-3; Emily Kyte 6-0-2; Amy Graham 4-0-0; Amelie Trottier-Picard 4-3-1; Sarah Howell 1-0-0; Alexandra Sheppard 1-0-1;
Totals 55-4-8.0.

(Assists) -
Amelie Trottier-Picard 43.

(Dig leaders)
- Jennifer Thomson 15; Sarah Howell 14; Amy Graham 14; Amelie Trottier-Picard 9; Emily Kyte 8

Laval (3)
(Kills-aces-blocks) -
Marie-C. Mondor 23-6-3; Melanie Savoie 22-0-1; Julie Rodrigue 12-1-4; Karine Ducharme 6-1-1; Krystel Nadeau 3-1-3; Catherine M-Julien 1-0-0; Genevieve B-Tremblay 1-0-0; Sarah L.-Levesque 0-0-2;
Totals 68-9-8.0.

(Assists) -
Sarah L.-Levesque 48.

(Dig leaders) -
Catherine M-Julien 26; Marie-C. Mondor 22; Melanie Savoie 17; Julie Rodrigue 15; Sarah L.-Levesque 13

Site: Quebec, Qc (Centre PEPS)
Date: 5 fev. 09 Attend: Time: 2:35