Women’s volleyball team falls to McMaster in the Thunderdome

Lakehead’s women’s volleyball team dropped their first home game in months on Saturday afternoon, losing to the McMaster Marauders in straight sets. Lakehead’s record goes to 1-10.

“As a team battling some adversity, we are trying to redefine and find our identity,” Thunderwolves head coach Craig Barclay said. “The afternoon, unfortunately, we did not show a lot of fight, or that we had found it.”

The Thunderwolves were returning home for their first match in their own gym in 2019, and their first home game in over two months. Additionally, Lakehead held its annual Think Pink! Spike For the Cure event, raising money for the Northern Cancer Fund, a local charity aimed at funding cancer research in northwestern Ontario.

People interested in donating to the campaign can still text HOPE to 20222 to donate $10 to the Northern Cancer Fund, or they can click HERE for more options.

The afternoon began slowly for Lakehead, as McMaster pulled away to an early lead, taking the first set 25-13. The second set was much of the same, with the final score mirroring the first’s 25-13 finish. The Thunderwolves battled back in the third, keeping the set close and cutting away at Marauder leads. Ultimately, however, Lakehead fell by a score of 25-20, ending the afternoon.

“It’s time for everyone on our team to step up and show they are ready to fight,” Barclay said. “It starts with ourselves and controlling our side of the court. We made far too many unforced errors and need to do a better job of extending rallies and finding different opportunities to score.”

The Thunderwolves were led by Rheanna Geisel’s 8 points, with Jessica Korchak and Rachel Sweezey contributing 2.5 each. Lakehead, however, finished with more hitting errors than kills.

Notably Thunderwolves volleyball alumna Kailan Robinson returned to the Thunderdome, but for the first time as a member of the McMaster Marauders. Robinson, who was a four-year player at Lakehead, finished with 4.5 points for McMaster.

The two squads will face off again tomorrow afternoon at 2pm in the Thunderdome.