THUNDER BAY – Facing McMaster and Waterloo to open the season was always going to be a challenge, says Lakehead Thunderwolves volleyball captain Rebekah Hara.
While neither team is ranked in the top 10, both finished in the top four in the OUA West standings a year ago and both squads are undefeated in OUA play in 2022-23.
On Saturday, the task got even tougher for Lakehead, as the Warriors reintroduced fourth-year star Sarah Glynn to their lineup.
Waterloo made easy work of the Thunderwolves in the first two sets, winning 25-15 and 25-16, but were pushed to the limit by a reinvigorated T-Wolves team in the third, Lakehead even managing to take a short-lived 17-16 lead at one point.
But the Warriors found the extra effort they needed and pulled out a 25-22 win in the third and final set, completing the weekend sweep at the C.J. Sanders Fieldhouse.
“Waterloo has some really big hitters. They’ve got the leading scorer in our league, so they brought her out today and (she) was tough to defend against,” said Hara, who hails from Ajax, Ont.
“We kind of were slow out of the gate to get to that, but we were able to turn it round by the third and kind of get on top of them, but it just took us while to get into it.”
Hara agreed the Thunderwolves didn’t make the most of their service game, an area in which the Warriors had the clear advantage.
Battleford, Sask.’s Abbey Neufeld took Waterloo on a 10-0 run that all but put the second set out of reach, turning a 6-4 match into a 16-4 runaway – though Lakehead closed out the set on a 12-9 run to close the gap slightly.
“It’s tough to be in your home gym and miss so many serves,” Hara said. “That’s something we’ve really got to work on, especially since we’ve got a lot more home games in the second half. That’ll be a big part of our focus and it played a part today.”
Lakehead coach Charlotte Sider said it wasn’t the result the team was seeking, but there were plenty of positives to take on the road next weekend against Nipissing, a team that’s split its first two games this season.
“We came out and we were ready to be aggressive with our serving, which is something we were challenged with a little bit yesterday,” said Sider, hired last April to take over the Thunderwolves program, following playing career with the University of Toronto where she was a two-time all-Canadian, an OUA champion and was, most recently, an assistant coach with the Varsity Blues.
“We were ready of defence in the third set and were able to establish our side a bit more. I think it’s just understanding how to trust each other and that’s always what happens with a new team, and figuring out how we work when playing with established teams like Waterloo and McMaster. They’ve already had a lot more time together.
That will come with experience, Sider said.
“We’re having to learn that fast, but we are learning it quickly and unfortunately it’s just through games that we get that experience. I already see the changes and the growth, so we’re getting there.”
