London, ON – Finishing off their weekend series against the visiting Thunderwolves, the Mustangs put forth another dominant performance to win 3-0 Sunday afternoon at Alumni Hall.
 
Despite playing their third game in as many days, the purple and white came out with lots of energy and took a small lead to begin the game.
 
They couldn't extend their lead early on however, as Lakehead kept it close and kept tying It up for an eventual 8-8 score before the visitors would take their first lead at 9-8.
 
The Thunderwolves would maintain their lead heading into the technical timeout at 16-12, giving Western their first taste of adversity. They would win the next 4 points to tie it up.
 
The purple and white then took a lead of their own at 22-17, as they looked to keep their straight sets record alive. They wouldn't let the lead go again, and ultimately took the first set 25-20.
 
The second set would start just like the first, with both teams exchanging points and not allowing the other to create a substantial lead.
 
The Mustangs would be the first to find a way through, taking a 15-8 lead off of a Megan Rising ace.
 
The visitors were not ones to give up and went on a run that when mixed with some Western errors saw them close the gap at 21-18.  The character of the purple and white showed as they were able to hold off a Thunderwolves come-back and claim the second set 25-19, finished off by a kill from Rachel Gray. A burst of energy rumbled through the home bench as they prepared for the third, and what they hoped to be final, set.
 
It proved to be a bit easier for the Mustangs.
 
Western got off to another fast start taking a 4-1 lead and would extend it without trouble to go up 16-7 at the buzzer. The Mustangs would have match-point at 25-12, but Lakehead wasn't willing to give up just yet. They would win the next 3 points to prevent a Western win, but ultimately fell short as Rising finished off the match with a kill.
 
The third and final game of the Lakehead-Western weekend series saw the Thunderwolves bring their best play forward, which the Mustangs were prepared for.
 
"Lakehead did what we expected, and they played probably their best match," said head coach Melissa Bartlett. "We had quite a fresh lineup, so it was great to see our players be able to respond in a more challenging match situation. I'm happy we were able to get that experience today."
 
"Obviously it was a tough weekend," said right side Rachel Gray who finished the game with 8 kills. "Playing the same team three days in a row can be hard, but I think our coaching staff and our team did a really good job adapting to how the team was playing and it felt amazing to win three straight."
 
The success Sunday afternoon was largely in part due to the Mustangs depth, as a lineup of fresh faces took to the court, proving yet again why Western is such a dangerous team from top to bottom. And after winning in straight sets yet again, the purple and white now head into the holiday break without having dropped a set.
 
"I've never as a coach gone into Christmas break without having lost a set so that's a credit to the depth on our team, but also just the high level of standards and execution that we've had," said Bartlett. "It is the deepest team we've ever had which is really promising."
 
Western now heads into a break before returning to game action in January, but the team will be sure to stay both physically and mentally prepared to start back right where they left off.
 
"We have court time during exam period, which is amazing, but our coaches are super accommodating for exams," said Gray who studies at Brescia. "We are doing a lot of team bonding over the break which will help us a lot with our communication."
 
"It is a challenging time, but every other team does it as well," said Bartlett. "We try to shift our focus a little more to physical training, getting the girls to do some on court training and giving them each a challenge that they need to work on, and then hopefully a little bit of competition before we are back with our first game."
 
And of course, the team will continue to bring their positive energy as they remember what it feels like last year to not have played at all.
 
"This is my first year as an OUA athlete technically since last year we had a bit of a longer break," said Gray. "It feels so good to be back on the court."
 
The Mustangs will return to action on the road against Windsor on January 12^th at 6pm.