LONDON, Ont. – Making good on Kelsey Veltman's promise from last night, the Mustangs took down the nationally ranked Marauders – the only OUA West team to best them this season – in a competitive four set contest (21-25, 25-23, 25-16, 25-18).
 
The match gives Western and McMaster matching 12-2 records to share first place in OUA West, and sit behind only Toronto across both the East and West standings.
 
"This win was 16 people strong," said interim head coach Heather Brinkman. "We train hard as a group and everyone on our second line is pushing just as hard as the first to be better."
 
At the head of the group effort was Veltman, who put up 17.5 points through a combination of kills, blocks and aces. Also making a statement on the scoresheet was second year outside Taylor Beedie, who recorded 12.5 points.
 
Leading McMaster through all four sets was Taylor Brisebois and Joanna Jedrzejewska, who recorded 11.5 and 10.5 points each.
 
The match opened with neither team playing to the best of their ability. Rallies were short, with the ball rarely making it over the net twice after the serve despite the lack of impressive swings.
 
Western sent a number of free balls over the net, allowing McMaster an easy pass on which they could execute a flawless attack. However, it wasn't the Marauder offence that was keeping the team afloat. With fewer kills, fewer blocks, and an equal number of service aces to Western, it was ultimately purple and white error that allowed McMaster to take the first set at 21-25.
 
"We were playing nervously," said Beedie. "We went in thinking that this was a huge game for us. We just had to stop and see that we are good enough to play, get our confidence back and that's all we had to do, go back in and play confidently."
 
Returning to the floor for the second set, it appeared as if the Mustangs had learned their lesson. Serves were sharper, blocks were firmer, and Western had taken the lead.
 
Danielle Grasman, upon moving into the front with Gyimah, quickly became a recognizable threat. In addition to throwing up a tall block, her knowledge of the game was apparent as she carefully chose whether she would take a swing or simply tip the ball over the net. With only one attack error recorded across the first two sets, she often chose correctly.
 
Western continued to concentrate power in the middle with established powerhouse Veltman taking over as the dominating force on the floor.
 
In an attempt to slow down the surging Mustangs, McMaster began making adjustments to the lineup. With London native Michelle Chelladurai moving into the setter position, the Marauders finally began firing back at the Mustangs with equal power.
 
However, a series of miss-hits and erroneous serves brought down the Marauder effort and gave Grasman the opportunity to close out the set at 25-23.
 
The Mustang momentum rolled over into the third set, with their early lead only briefly overtaken before Western was able to jump out ahead once again.
 
From the service line Beedie's consistent accuracy and Veltman's spin serve bolstered the purple and white effort, while Beedie also shone as she picked up a number of balls in the back court.
 
Getting frantic as Western approached the 20-point mark, communication on the McMaster end of the floor began to breakdown. The Marauders sent Western a number of soft free balls as they tried to repair the errors made from last minute passes.
 
With McMaster unable to fully adjust to the Mustangs pace, the purple and white claimed the set 25-16.
 
The fourth set opened up with back-and-forth action that put both McMaster and the Mustangs leading the scoreboard, before Western broke the pattern with their most successful rotations. When Kat Tsiofas takes over the serve with Veltman, Beedie, and Gyimah in the front court, the Mustangs can seemingly do no wrong.
 
Strong blocking was seen from the entire purple and white contingent. With only seven kills recorded in the final set, McMaster was rarely able to make good on an opportunity to score.
 
"We definitely try to be a strong blocking team," said Beedie. "We have the height to do it. Knowing that Mac has really strong hitters it was crucial for us to get our blocks up. It was definitely something we've been working towards [in practice]."
 
The Mustangs, however, had no such problem with the McMaster blocks and continued to send out rockets.
 
Fuelled by an energetic crowd, Western ran through the Marauders to bring the final set 25-18 and capture the match.
 
"We'll continue training as hard as we have been in practice," said Beedie about the plan to take on the Lions and Lakers. "Everyone's focused and putting in 110 percent."
 
"We want to go to the OUAs, and Nationals are in our sights as well," said Brinkman about her predictions for the remainder of the season. "But, one thing at a time. I think it shows from our performance that there's really no limit to what we can do."