Huskies fall to Axewomen in semi-final

(St. John's, NL) The first game of the AUS Women's Volleyball semifinal pitted the Saint Mary's Huskies against the Acadia Axewomen. Regular season headers had seen both teams take two games each, and this semifinal was not to be different.

First set action saw the Axewomen firing on all cylinders taking an early lead halfway through the first set (15-9). The Huskies tried to regain composure and improved on the offensive front, but ended up dropping the set to the Axewomen (25-19).

The second set was the Huskies being more incisive going forward while setting up a strong and solid defensive wall. The Huskies took a considerable lead early on in the set (8-3) which they would not relinquish despite an intense offensive effort by the Axewomen towards the end of the set. The Huskies took the set with a score of 25-20 to even out the score to 1-1.

The third set saw both teams exchanging point after point with no side taking a healthy lead until the midway point of the set. With the score tied to 15, the Axewomen stepped on the gas and took a 22-16 lead. The Axewomen held on to this lead and took the set with a score of 25-18.

The fourth set told a familiar tale for any fans that have been following the headers between these two teams all season long. Much like in the third set, both teams exchanged points in an emotional and contested set. The midway point of the set reflected a scoreboard of 12-12. The Huskies swiftly took the offensive initiative and made it 20-16 with their eyes set on a prospective fifth set thriller. The Huskies managed to make good on their advantage and took the game to the definitive fifth set (25-19).

The fifth set saw two courageous teams giving it their all for the right to be on the AUS final. The Axewomen took a 14-8 lead that appeared to be definitive to the eyes of those attending the game. However, in a display of resilience the Huskies were able to bring it to 14-13 before dropping the final point to the Axewomen whom advanced to the final after this hellacious game (15-13).

Lauryn Renzella and Sarah Ross led the way for the Axewomen with 16 and 11 kills respectively while Regan Herrington recorded 47 assists. For the Huskies, Erin Smith had 16 kills while Anna Watt recorded 10.

The Acadia Axewomen will face the winner of the semifinal featuring the Memorial University Sea-Hawks against the Dalhousie Tigers scheduled for 7pm NST. The final will take place March 3^rd at Memorial University at 7pm NST.