LONDON, Ont. - While Western’s football team was battling Queen’s on the gridiron in Kingston for the 102nd Yates Cup, there was another Mustangs-Golden Gaels matchup occurring simultaneously on Nov. 14.

The second game took place on the volleyball court in London at Alumni Hall.

And, in this game, Western won.

With a score of 3-1 (37-35, 25-19, 17-25, 25-19), the Mustangs beat the Golden Gaels in an exciting game between the two second-place teams in the OUA.

With the win, Western is tied for second place with Windsor, both with a record of 5-1, while Queen’s drops down to fourth place (5-2).  All three teams recorded a loss to McMaster, who remains undefeated (6-0) in first place in the OUA and second place in CIS rankings. 

Fifth-year senior, Eric Simon (London, Ont.), dominated with 21 points, including 16 kills, 12 digs, two service aces, three solo blocks, and one assisted block.  Simon is ranked third in the OUA.

Golden Gael, Joren Zeeman (Cambridge, Ont.), the OUA first-place leader, also had a 21-point performance, including 19 kills, two digs, and two solo blocks.

On Western’s side of the net, there were also solid contributions from Mathieu Poulin (Winnipeg, Man.) with 12 points (11 kills, 11 digs, and one solo block), and Mathew Waite (St. Thomas, Ont.) with 10 points (9 kills, one dig, one solo block, and three assisted blocks).

Going into the game, Western’s coach, Jim Sage, was excited at the opportunity to play against Queen’s, with whom Western has what he described as a “big rivalry.”

In the end, Sage was pleased with the result of the game, especially the close 37-35 win in the first set, and how the Mustangs regained control after the third set loss (17-25) to win the fourth set (25-19).

All in all, according to Sage, “Mission accomplished.”

Western’s next mission is to beat the RMC Paladins (0-6) on Nov. 15 at 3:00 p.m. at Alumni Hall.