Box Score LONDON, Ont.- The Western Mustangs men’s volleyball team stepped back on home court tonight against the Windsor Lancers for their first game of the new year. The Lancers showed a lot of heart, but it was not enough to overcome the dominant play of the Mustangs who topped Windsor in three straight sets bringing their OUA season record to 8-2.
 
Set scores were 25-22, 25-18, 25-19.
 
“I was a little bit worried about the match,” Mustangs head coach Jim Sage said. “Windsor is fighting for a playoff spot, and they gave us a handful last time they played us in Windsor. Even up 2-0, I thought ‘oh no—maybe, here we go again.’ I was probably more nervous in the third set than the whole game, just because I wanted to get this done. As soon as you give Windsor a snip, they’ll run with it.
 
“They play on a lot of emotion. I was pleased with the guys—we are getting close to achieving some of our goals in terms of focus and intensity. I am proud of them for that.”
 
Leading the Mustangs were Justin Scapinello and Garrett May, each with 12.5 points and four digs in the three set affair. Scapinello also earned 12 kills on 20 attempts, while May followed with 12 kills on 24 attempts. Leading the way for the Lancers was Greg Simone with a game high of 13 points and 11 kills.
 
After a successful first half of the 2012-2013 season, the Mustangs looked confident against the Windsor Lancers. The game commenced as a point-for-point affair before the Lancers took a slim lead. But the Mustangs wouldn’t trail for long as they managed to tie the game making it a point-for-point affair once again. At the technical timeout, Windsor was up by one. When the game resumed, Western surged two points ahead and challenged their opponent’s every move. The Mustangs eventually took the set 25-22.
 
Windsor opened the second set with a quick three points, edging Western for what only seemed like a moment before the set was tied 4-4. The game took a turn as the Mustangs gained a convincing lead over their opponent, building up a seven-point advantage. Remaining consistent, the Mustangs held on to their lead, and despite Windsor getting a few points near the end of the set, Western earned the second set victory by a score of 25-18.
 
Down by two sets, Windsor was seeking a comeback and tried to prevent Western from gaining any easy points in the third. Both teams traded points during the opening half of the set. But with the help of strong kills from powerhouse May, the Mustangs managed to get ahead 11-7. The Mustangs led 16-12 at the technical time out and showed no sign of relinquishing their lead. Windsor aimed for revenge after the first two sets, but could not keep up with the puprle and white and fell for the third time by a score of 25-19.
 
The Mustangs return to the court next weekend to continue the OUA regular season, when they play the Queen’s Gaels at 2:00 p.m. in Alumni Hall.