The Windsor Lancers logged an impressive 3-2 (22-25, 26-24, 21-25. 25-20, 15-12) upset win over the No. 7 Brock Badgers at the St. Denis Centre Friday night.
 
The win is the Lancers' second over a ranked opponent in as many games, downing the Western Mustangs on the road in their last contest. Though the blue and gold face an uphill battle for playoff contention, they showed how tough of an opponent they'd be for any team in the province.
 
GAME STATS
First year Yaila Sealy had a great outing, leading the Lancers with 15 kills on the night. Brock's Laura Condotta led all players with 23 kills on the night.
 
Brooke Davis was her accurate serving self, with a game leading seven aces. Brock's Grace Edwards led the Badgers with three.
 
Davis led the Lancers in assists too with 46 on the night, while Brock's Emily Armstong finished with 66 assists.
 
GAME FLOW
The blue and gold got off to a great start, opening the match on a 4-0 run, that included an ace from Davis, and leading Brock to call an early time-out. Coming out of the break the Badgers began to answer but continued production from the service line kept Brock at bay as Windsor led 12-8.  With the technical approaching however, the Badgers closed the gap and took their first lead of the set, 14-13. Brock held the lead at the technical, 16-14 and despite the Lancers stubbornly battling back, the visitors took the set 25-22.
 
Sparked by another Davis ace, the Lancers opened the second on a 9-5 run, forcing the Badgers into a timeout trailing 10-6.  The set mirrored the first though, as the Badgers stole the lead just before the technical, 14-13. After trailing 16-14 at the break, the Lancers tied the set at 16. However, three straight errors forced Windsor into a timeout, down 19-16. The timeout worked wonders for the blue and gold, who fought their way back, tying the game at 20. After an ace from Erin Dane and a great kill from Lexi Pollard, the Lancers led 23-22. The Badgers extended the set, but the Lancers closed it out with a 26-24 win, tying the match at 1-1.
 
The third set was a shootout in the beginning, both sides tied at 4-4. The Lancers then went on a quick 3-0 run to make it 7-4 before the Badgers responded with a 8-0 run to take a 12-7 lead. Ally Winik broke the run but the Lancers were in trouble at the technical, down 16-11. The blue and gold came out with a 5-1 run, forcing the Badgers into a timeout. Though the run gave the Lancers some life, it couldn't win them the set, as Brock prevailed, 25-21.
 
The blue and gold fell behind early in the fourth, forcing head coach Lucas Hodgson to take a timeout with his squad trialing 11-8. Coach Hodgson's timeout went exactly as planned, with his girls coming out and tying the game at 12. The Lancers kept their foot on the gas and had the lead the technical, 16-15 looking to extend the game. The Lancers defended their lead with a fantastic effort at the net, the wall the blue and gold put up had three blocks over the back half of the set. The set point came on a block at the net as the Lancers forced a fifth set, taking the fourth 25-20.
 
As the fifth set got underway the Lancers clearly held the momentum, capitalizing on some Badgers mistakes and finding themselves up 8-5 as the schools switched sides. Coming out of the break, Winik had another block continuing her dominant day at the net. The No. 7 Badgers didn't make it easy though, fighting back and forcing the Lancers into a timeout. Coming down the stretch, Windsor continued to block effectively, maintaining their lead. With match point on the line, Lexi Pollard delivered a strong kill that the Badgers couldn't handle, sending it out of bounds to give Windsor the 15-12 set win and the match.
 
UP NEXT
The Lancers celebrate senior day when they host the McMaster Marauders on Saturday, February 22nd at 6:00 p.m. at the St. Denis Centre. Tickets can be purchased at in advance at www.goLancers.ca/tickets.