LONDON, Ont. – Although the Mustangs weren't able to repeat a three set win over the Gaels from earlier this season, the Mustangs would still manage to defeat longtime rival Queen's 3-1 (18-25, 25-19, 25-21, 25-13) Saturday afternoon at Alumni Hall. 

With the win, the Mustangs hold a 9-8 regular season record and remain in sixth place within the OUA standings. The Gael's record falls to 11-6 on the season and they continue to hold down fourth place.
 
"It was a good overall team effort, we had everybody contributing," said fourth-year Mustang Doug Austrom. "[Queen's] is a really good team that's been on a hot streak lately, so to come out right now and peak at the right time heading into the last few matches for playoffs is exactly what we want and what we've been playing for all year."
 
The Mustangs may have started off the set with a towering three-man block that left the Gaels reeling, but Queen's quickly responded with a series of kills that put them up by two points.
 
With multiple changes in the team leading the set already at 9-12, the teams were locked in a constant fight for dominance. Still trailing at 15-17, the Mustangs struggled to combat the flurry of attacks from Markus Trence and Mike Tomlinson while Queen's libero Ivo Dramov refused to let any ball drop.
 
Trence ended the first set for the Gaels at 18-25 with a final kill.
 
Starting out the second set with a quick few points, the Mustangs were up 4-1 early on.  Playing with renewed energy and a tighter defense, Western had the Gaels doubled at 8-4.
 
The time-out called by Queen's couldn't interrupt the purple and white momentum, as they maintained the four-point lead at 12-8. Smart setting by rookie Matt Hooker paired with the team's more rigorous defensive play kept Western ahead of Queen's and forced them into a time-out at 20-15.
 
Ending with a service ace from veteran Justin Scapinello, the Mustangs closed out the second set 25-19 to force a fourth set.
 
An early deficit in the third set couldn't keep the Mustangs down, as they matched the Gael score at 4-4, and surpassed them moments later.
 
Mike Choja's play at the net helped push the Mustangs' score even further ahead at 10-7.
 
At 18-13, Queen's called a time-out after struggling with the consistency of the Western serves and the power behind the attacks. Returning to the court, Queen's picked up three consecutive points to force a Mustang time-out.
 
Ending at 25-21 following an error from Queen's, the Mustangs took the third set.
 
Chris Newcombe and Austrom started off the set with a double block that shut down the Gael attack. The Mustangs followed up with a seven-point run that brought the score to 8-1.
 
Refusing to slow down, the Mustangs raked up a ten-point lead at 15-5. With the ten-point lead still in effect at 21-11, the Gaels were left floundering by the constant stream of Mustang attacks.
 
With a final kill from Austrom, Western ended the set and the match at 25-13.
 
"They executed, they blocked, we had some great plays," said head coach Jim Sage about his team's performance. "It was a good volleyball game to watch, especially in the second and third sets when there were some crazy rallies going on. It was good volleyball."
 
Markus Trence of Queen's led both teams in total points, recording 16.5 across four sets, with fellow Gael Scott Brunet just behind at 16 points. Leading the Mustang scoresheet was Scapinello who earned 13.5 points, while Austrom followed up with 12 points.
 
The Mustangs return to the court on Sunday, February 1 to face off against the RMC Paladins. Game time is set for 3 p.m. with online streaming of the match is available for long-distance fans at OUA.tv.