Box Score TORONTO –  The last time the Mustangs met McMaster in the post-season, Western launched a four set upset to take down the team who had dominated the West Division on their home court in Hamilton. This year there was a new location and a bronze medal on the line, but the end result remained the same: a purple and white victory.
 
In a five-set thriller (25-16, 18-25, 21-25, 25-22, 15-13) the Mustangs came out on top to capture their second bronze medal in as many years at University of Toronto's Goldring Centre.
 
For the second game in a row OUA First-Team All-Star Aja Gyimah led the Mustangs and picked up another Player of the Game award along the way.  The Scarborough native's 21 kills topped both sides of the scoresheet, while Kelsey Veltman came in with 19 points, and veteran Serena Smith added 13 points in her final game as a Mustang.
 
Taylor Brisebios led the way for the Marauders with her 11 kills, six solo blocks, and service ace resulting in 18 points. Just two points behind her was McMaster's Player of the Game, Maicee Sorensen. The junior middle picked up 16 points from 12 kills, two service aces, and two solo blocks. The commendation comes just days after she picked up a Second-Team All-Star nod.
 
Gyimah followed up last night's team-leading performance by taking control of the net early on from the right side, while a collection of out of system plays also allowed setter Kat Tsiofas to show off her own left handed swing. The Marauders were initially able to shut down Mustang attackers at the net, but tight coverage on the part of Western kept rallies going and the pressure on.
 
The pair of lefties took control of the game early on to build a fast lead over the Marauders.
 
McMaster may have recorded the highest number of service aces in the regular season and built up a reputation as one of the most lethal rosters from the baseline, but they met their match in Katie McKenna. Her first serve was unreturnable, while three of the following five could only be sent back over the net as free balls.
 
Candice Scott and Veltman added aces of their own to keep momentum rolling from the Mustangs.
 
A four-point run looked like the beginning of a Marauder comeback, but it came too late in the set as a single miss handed Western the victory at 25-16.
 
The Marauders roared back onto the court for the second set to built up their own lead that would carry them through to the 25-point mark.
 
Western was unable to carry over their success in the serve game into the next set as consecutive serves were sent flying past the baseline. Giving away a handful of points, Western put themselves behind.  
 
Lauren Mastroluisi, playing her final game with the Marauders, took over from Gyimah as the preeminent offensive threat on the floor. The fifth-year Geography student served as the biggest challenge to Western's defense as she consistently sent the ball just beyond the reach of the Mustangs.
 
While not recording any points herself, libero Carly Heath also played a big role in McMaster's success. The Alberta native took the brunt of Gyimah and Veltman's attacks to give setter Caitlin Genovy the perfect ball to sent to Mastroluisi. 
 
After going nearly the entire set without recording any big blocks, the Marauders won the second game with two in a row to hand the Mustangs an 18-25 loss.
 
The third set started out as a tightly contested affair, with Veltman and Sorensen fighting it out in the middle while Courtney Sestric, Tsiofas, and Heath did everything they could to keep the ball off the floor.
 
Serena Smith had some of her best offensive movements of the season towards the end of the set, but it wasn't enough to eliminate the point difference as the third was marked down as as a 21-25 loss.
 
Returning to the floor for the fourth set the Mustangs picked up their fastest lead of the night after a few blocks from Veltman completely shut down the Marauder offence.
 
Brisebois fought back with some strong blocks of her own, forcing Western's leading attackers to rethink their approach and timing. Combined with purple and white service errors, the Marauders had enough to tie the set at 12s.
 
From that point on the set went back-and-forth as the two teams battled for every point. Both coaches made lineup changes in an attempt to find better chemistry on the floor, but it was Western's starters who would ultimately close out the set.
 
An ace from Scott came after two sets of rocky serving from the entire purple and white roster, while a double block pushed the score to 25-22 to force a fifth set.
 
McMaster came into the fifth set fired up with characteristically strong serves and a scrappy defensive play that rarely saw a ball hit the ground.
 
Keeping to what had worked best in pervious sets, the Marauders continued to concentrate offensive power through the middle of the court as Brisebois and Sorensen
 
The Mustangs, however, weren't willing to give up on the medal easily. Seven consecutive points matched the Marauders at 12-12 and carried the Mustangs to match point at 14-12.
 
Gyimah's high-flying attack led the effort as she pounded through McMaster's blockers, while Veltman and Taylor Beedie also landed key points in the final run. Serving through the lengthy run was OUA First Team All-Star Tsiofas, who has built up a reputation as one of the most impressive servers on the roster.
 
A final kill from OUA West Player of the Year Veltman ended the set at 15-13 to earn the Mustangs their second consecutive OUA bronze medal.