WEEKEND RECAP: Gee-Gees sweep weekend, earning wins over Laval and UQTR

A promising preseason has turned into a promising start to the RSEQ regular season for the Gee-Gees women's volleyball team. This weekend, the team improved their record to 2-1 on the young season with a win at Laval on Friday and against UQTR at home on Sunday. 

Friday at Laval:

In the first matchup of the weekend, the Ottawa defeated Laval 3-1 in Quebec City to earn their first win of the season.

In a tightly contested affair, the Rouge et Or picked up a 25-18 win in the first set. Storming back in the second set, the Gee-Gees were down to the wire with Laval holding the 24-23 advantage, before Ottawa came back to capture the set win 26-24. Back-to-back key plays by Denae Bristow with a kill and an ace on the following serve gave the Gee-Gees the advantage, which they quickly capitalized on for the set win.

In the third, the Gee-Gees powered to a 21-14 lead, before Laval strung together a late comeback, ultimately Ottawa held on to secure the 25-22 win and set up an opportunity to clinch the win in the fourth.

Finally, in the fourth set, the teams battled closely until a string of six consecutive points for the Gee-Gees broke a 12-12 stalemate to give the visitors a healthy lead they would hold onto for a 25-21 set win.

Audrey Odigie led the way with 14 kills in the win, while also adding eight digs on the defensive end. Avery Hughes also added 11 kills and two aces on the night.

Sunday vs. UQTR:

In the Gee-Gees' home opener on Sunday, they once again battled back and earned a dramatic 3-2 win over the UQTR Patriotes at Montpetit Hall.

In the second, Ottawa responded to dropping the first set by turning the tides twice to earn a 25-23 win. The third set was all Patriotes as the visitors won the set 25-11 forcing the Gee-Gees to a crucial fourth set to stay in the match. 

In the fourth, Ottawa powered to a 12-5 early lead before the two squads traded points until the Gee-Gees pulled away in the late stages to secure a 25-19 win and send the match to a fifth and final set. 

The dramatic back-and-forth nature of the match continued into the fifth, as the Gee-Gees completed a comeback from being down 8-4 to tie the set at 8-8. Ultimately, the set would end up tied again at 10, 11, and 12 points before the Gee-Gees broke ahead on a Bristow ace and a UQTR error. Ottawa then closed off the 15-13 win on a kill by Trinity Lusan, who was thrust into a pivotal role subbing in for an injured Odigie in the third set.

The victory for the Gee-Gees gives them their first back-to-back league wins since the 2016-17 season. Sitting at 2-1, Ottawa is currently in third place in the RSEQ.

"In this conference it takes everyone, and it takes guts," said Gee-Gees head coach Lionel Woods, lauding the effort of the veterans and rookies stepping in and taking whatever role they are faced with. 

"I would've said we were too young to be at Laval and down 23-22 in the second and win, and I would've said we're too young to get blown out in the third [against UQTR] and come back and win. Clearly, they don't think so, that's where we're at now we have to build on it."

In the win, Hughes led the way with 15 kills to go along with four digs and two aces. Setter Maxim Langevin had 34 assists while also contributing 11 digs. 

"We're all coming together, we have a great connection, and on top of that we've got some studs on this team. It's really fun to play alongside them." said Hughes. "The RSEQ is really head-to-head, it looks like there's not a clear favourite this year, which is exciting. It's cool to not have expectations heading into games, but just trusting what we have as a team." 

Up next, the Gee-Gees have a home matching up with UQAM on Nov. 6 at 1 p.m. Tickets are on sale at tickets.geegees.ca.