Box Score Toronto, ON – Western went head-to-head with Guelph on Saturday, March 7^th for the Quigley Cup bronze medal. Unfortunately, the Mustangs fell short to the Gryphons, who bested them with 3-1. 
 
The Mustangs got off to a rough start this afternoon; Guelph was able to maintain a healthy lead for the first half of the game. Without their lead coach present, Western was making a number of self-errors and having difficulty keeping their serves in bounds. The Gryphons were up by ten points with the scoreboard showing 22-12 as a timeout was called. The Mustangs were trailing, but still had a chance to make a comeback. If Guelph were to take this set, it would be their first set victory during the Quigley Cup playoffs. With the set point in sight, the score sat at 24-14. The Gryphons were thriving off of their precise net-play and confident digs throughout this set. In the blink of an eye, the Mustangs' opposition brought the heat and the crowd watched as the ball touched down on Western's side of the court. With 25-14, the Gryphons accepted victory of the first set.
 
Guelph didn't seem to have gained any energy from their previous set victory as Western was able to quickly rack up a small lead. With 7-5, the Mustangs reclaimed possession of the serve, which would definitely enable them to sprint forward as they already had been. After a while, the Gryphons were able to recover from the deficit before them, tying the score up at 11-11. For the first time this afternoon, Western coaches decided to bring in Chloe Biel for the serve. Guelph began to build some momentum as they took the lead for the first time this set, bringing the score to 15-13. After Western's Jessica Lam served the ball up with just a bit too much heat, Guelph was able to gain that special sixteenth point that would send both teams into the technical timeout. The teams went back-and-forth for the next few points, consistently able to one-up each other before Western pulled forward once again with 19-17. Western's Kate Van Camp stepped into the service position this time around, sending heat over the net. The Gryphons seemed to have warmed up by the time the opportunity to snag the last few remaining points came around, quickly overcoming the Mustangs as the score rose to 23-21. Western wasn't ready to call it quits yet though, racking up the couple points they needed to meet Guelph in a tie towards the very end of the game. Eventually, the Mustangs managed to even the playing field and take the second set with 26-24.
 
With both teams holding onto a set win, stakes were high going into the third. The Gryphons were able to pull away early on with 9-6 until a kill by Western's Kate Ferguson allowed them to regain possession of the serve. After one of Guelph's players came down from a spike onto Western's Melissa Langegger's ankle, the game paused while trainers checked to make sure the Mustang was okay. Down for the count, Langegger was helped off the court as Western's Carly Kimmett came on to take her place. Coming out of the technical timeout, the scoreboard showed 16-12 for Guelph. An illegal rotation from the Mustangs brought the Gryphons five points away from victory. The Gryphons were really working off their momentum as the Mustangs recovered from losing one of their key players; Western coaches recognized this and chose then to signal for a timeout. With 23-16, Guelph was creeping closer and closer to taking the third set. After a hard fight from Western, the Gryphons managed to snag the set point and finished this one off with 25-22. 
 
Guelph took off early on in the fourth set, earning four points before the Mustangs managed one. Western's Lam stepped into the service position as the ball returned to the London team. With the Mustangs trailing behind, possession of the serve was grabbed back by the Gryphons. In an impressive comeback, Western overcame a six-point deficit and managed to surpass Guelph as the score rose to 12-11. The Gryphons weren't done yet though, fighting back and flipping the script as they reclaimed the lead going into the technical timeout. They continued to soar over the Mustangs; the score paused at 21-14 while both teams went into a timeout. With just a single point separating Guelph from taking home the bronze, a hush fell over the Toronto facility. Sure enough, the Gryphons stuck their last needed point in the bank, taking the fourth set with 25-17 and the overall game with 3-1. 
 
An unfortunate ending for the Mustangs, this game would conclude their 2019/20 season. The women had an amazing year filled with achievements and win streaks. Congratulations Mustangs!