Tigers come back to hand Volleyball Axewomen 3-2 loss

(FREDERICTON, NB) The U SPORTS No. 3 Dalhousie Tigers remain unbeaten, but just barely. 

The Tigers came from behind to beat the Acadia Axewomen 3-2 on Sunday, the final day of the Atlantic University Sport league tournament, in Fredericton. 

The Tigers won with scores of 25-20, 23-25, 23-25, 25-14 and 15-4. 

"I'm happy we could pull that out," said third-year Tiger Julie Moore (Halifax, NS). "They were being very aggressive from the service line and we struggled passing a bit, but once we figured that out, the match turned around for us." 

Moore led the Tigers with 14 kills and 15 digs. She was named the Subway Player of the Game. 

"It's been a grind. It's a long weekend. We're feeling a bit beat up," she said. 

The Tigers established a lead early, pushing ahead 4-1 in the opening set which prompted an early Acadia time-out. 

The Axewomen rallied, closing the gap to 8-7, and then winning a long rally to tie it 8-8. 

Acadia hung with the Tigers, tying the set 11-11 and 13-13, and even took a 15-13 lead. 

The Axewomen led 16-15 at the technical time-out, but the Tigers scored the next four points, taking a 19-16 lead and won the opener 25-20. 

In the second, it was the Axewomen asserting themselves early, building a 5-1 lead that forced a Dal time-out. Acadia came out of that break and scored the next point, going up 6-1. 

The Tigers chipped away at the Acadia lead and were up 16-13 at the technical time-out. 

A back-and-forth set saw Acadia go up 24-23, and win the set 25-23. 

Dal responded in the third, building an early 4-1 lead. 

The Axewomen rallied, behind only two at the technical time-out, with Dal up 16-14. 

The Tigers would continue to lead, but weren't able to extend the lead beyond a point or two, until they went up 19-16. 

Acadia rallied again, tying the match 19-19 and then taking a 22-19 lead on route to another 25-23 win and a two-sets-to-one lead on the Tigers. 

There was more back-and-forth play in the fourth set, with ties at 8 and 9 before Dal went up 12-9. 

The Tigers took a 16-10 lead to the technical time-out and added to it, going on a 7-0 run to go up 23-10 on route to a 25-14 win. 

In the deciding set, the Tigers raced out to a 5-0 lead before the Axewomen could answer. 

Dal continued to add to their lead, going ahead 12-2 and winning 15-4 to complete the comeback. 

Not happy with the loss, Axewomen captain Peyton DeWolfe (Conquerall Mills, NS), who had 18 digs, admitted there was something positive in taking the Tigers to five sets. 

"There is a positive, but I think it's an expectation that we win those games, and I think it's a bit of a disappointment that we kind of beat ourselves in the end, but it's something to build off of in the next half of the season." 

Kristen Bartmann (Uxbridge, ON) and Catherine Callaghan (Halifax, NS) both had 14 digs for the Tigers. 

Becky Dorsey (Toronto, ON) recorded a match-high 21 digs for Acadia, while Sydney Zakutney (Ottawa, ON) added 17 and 36 assists. 

The Tigers are now 8-and-0, while Acadia is 5-and-4. 

Both teams are now off until after the Christmas break. 

AUS women's volleyball action resumes January 10th,  when the Tigers host Memorial, and Acadia welcomes Moncton. 

RECAP BY: Andy Campbell/UNB Athletics 

PHOTOS BY: James West/for UNB Athletic