GUELPH, Ont. - Melissa Langegger and Kelsey Veltman combined for 25 points to help the Western Mustangs start off their season with an impressive three set (25-20, 25-22, 25-9) win over the Guelph Gryphons on Friday night at the Gryphon Athletic Centre.
 
Both Langegger and Veltman scored 12.5 points in the victory, with Langegger tallying nine kills, two solo blocks, and two assisted blocks, while Veltman registered six kills, four solo blocks, and three block assists. Both Danielle Grasman and Taylor Beedie made their presence felt in the win, with 11.5 and 10 points, respectively.
 
Michaela Hellinga led the Gryphons in scoring with nine points off seven kills and two block, with Jessica Gormley next on the score sheet with seven points.
 
Langegger began putting points on the board right out of the gate on Friday, scoring Western's first three points of the match on three consecutive kills to help the Mustangs build an early 7-2 lead.
 
The Gryphons then began to claw their way back, pulling to within one with the Mustangs up 9-8. It was a point-for-point affair after that, with serving errors preventing either side from gaining much momentum as Western took a 16-14 lead at the technical timeout. Western continued to hold the edge right through the end of the frame with the Mustangs taking the first set 25-20.
 
The second set would prove to be the closet of the night, and fittingly enough it was one that started out with both sides trading points up until the scoreboard was deadlocked at 6-6.
 
Western then began to pull away, utilizing strong blocking to go on a 7-0 run and eventually taking a 16-9 lead into the technical timeout.
 
Despite trailing by seven the Gryphons battled back after the break, picking up points off Western errors and kills from Hellinga and Gormley to tie the game at 20-20. Unfortunately for the home side that was as close as things would get, as the Mustangs would close out the frame with a kill from Grasman to take a 25-20 set win.
 
The Mustangs took the momentum from their first two sets and used it to start the third on a dominant 10-3 run to force the Gryphons into an early timeout. The timeout couldn't slow down the purple and white, with Western taking a 16-5 lead at the technical on their way to a 25-9 set win. The duo of Veltman and Langegger were nearly unstoppable in the third, combining for 10.5 points, with Veltman registering 6.5, while Langegger recorded four points in the frame.
 
Western will wrap up its season opening weekend on the road on Saturday night, with the Mustangs heading to Waterloo to take on the Warriors. Game time is set for 6 p.m., and fans can watch the action live on OUA.tv