London, ON – The Mustang's persistency through a suspenseful neck and neck game earned them a 3-0 victory over the Brock Badgers Saturday November 4^th at Alumni Hall (26-24, 27-25, 25-20).

"We certainly didn't give up being down in the first and second sets" head coach Jim Sage said reflecting on the team's close victories in the first two sets. "I'm very happy they know how to finish."
 "I think we played pretty well in the clutch" Matt Hooker said. "I think we're a tight knit group that works really well together. A few of our middles and outsides had a few good blocks that were pretty key to our performance."

Evan Hammond played one of his best matches of the year earning a total of 12 points and 4 block assists for the team among other effective blocks and timely kills.
For the majority of the first set, the Mustangs remained consistently behind. The Badgers performed several effective blocks and attacks maintaining an enthusiastic narrow lead. As the Badgers pulled ahead, the Mustangs achieved a few successful attacks to maintain a competitive score. Attack errors by the Badgers allowed the Mustangs to catch up. When the Badgers hovered only one point away from claiming the set, the Mustangs made several effective blocks and attacks earning three points. When the Badgers and the Mustangs sat tied at 24 points, the Mustangs effectively blocked and attacked twice to earn two consecutive points, pulling ahead and win the set 26-24.

Set 2 began with long, neck and neck rallies between the teams, the score increasing by one for each team for several rounds. The Mustangs pulled ahead with a reception failure then an attack failure by the Badgers. Brock pulled back ahead with a few reception failures by the Mustangs. Despite several effective blocks, the Mustangs remained narrowly behind for the first half of the set.
Going into the second half the Mustangs maintained a deficit of two. The Badgers began to enthusiastically pull ahead with some reception errors by the Mustangs. After an extended rally Brock pulled ahead 21-15. The Mustangs came back with three points after Badgers attack errors and an effective block by Jackson Bere. A suspenseful rally earned the Mustangs two more points, bringing the score 23-24 for the Badgers. An effective block by the Mustangs, another effective attack and the team roared with enthusiasm. Brock came back with another point tying the score at 25-25. A failed service by the Badgers put the Mustangs ahead. A rally continued: Brady Fidler dove to keep it in and the Badgers failed to receive. The Mustangs won the second set 27-25.

The Mustangs started the third set strong. Rallies kept the teams tied. Western pulled ahead though the Badgers maintained a competitive score. An effective spike and block by the Mustangs pulled them ahead 22-17.  The Badgers began a comeback after several failed attacks by the Mustangs but Western was able to pull ahead 24-20 but a service failure delayed their victory. With a successful attack and failed block, the Mustangs won their third set 25-20.

"It was a really important win for us in so many ways" Sage said. "We'll be on the road next weekend with two tough matches against Guelph and Waterloo so we wanted to be sure we made these wins at home."

The Mustangs will travel to Guelph to face the Gryphons next Saturday November 10^th, and to Waterloo the following Sunday.