Box Score The Waterloo men's volleyball team are off to the OUA final four for the second straight season after a nail-biting 3-1 (25-20, 17-25, 26-24, 25-23) win over the Toronto Varsity Blues on Saturday night at the PAC. 

The feisty Blues battled the second ranked Warriors every step of the way, splitting the opening sets but the resilient Warriors won the key points down the stretch to sneak past the Blues and earn a berth into the final four.

The opening set saw the Blues jump out of the gate to a 7-2 lead but Waterloo would shake off the opening set jitters and bounce back to even things at 10-all.  From there the black and gold would use strong blocking and effective serving to claim the set 25-20.

Toronto came out firing once again in the second set, taking a 4-1 lead but this time would maintain control of the set.  With Waterloo holding a slight 14-12 lead the Blues would notch eight straight points to take a 20-14 lead and would cruise to the 25-17 set win.

The third and pivotal set would get the fans on their feet with the rally of the match.  With the Blues holding a slim 8-7 lead Waterloo and Toronto would turn up the intensity and defensive prowess which ensued in a lengthy rally capped off by a strong kill by right side Zachary Doherty (Goderich/) of the Warriors. 

The two combatants would again exchange several points before Waterloo would go on a 5-0 run to take a 16-11 lead midway through the set.  The Blues would eventually close the gap and Waterloo held a slight 24-23 lead late into the set.  With several key blocks by Jordan Dyck (St. Catharines/) in the middle the Warriors would take the all-important third set 26-24 and 2-1 lead in the match.

The fourth set would open much like the third with Toronto jumping out to a slim lead before Waterloo would put away eight straight points to take a 13-9 lead.  The gritty Blues squad would however not go down without a fight as right side Mitchell Woodside (Clyde River, PEI)  would put away several kills to bring the visiting side right back into the set. 

Toronto would pull ahead by two (23-21) late in the set but Waterloo would use their height advantage to take the next four points and win the set 25-23 to advance to the OUA final four next weekend.

Waterloo was led by left side Fiodar Kazhamiaka (Waterloo/) who had 15 points on his 10 kills and six assisted blocks.  Kazhamiaka also had two service aces and seven digs in the win.  In the middle Jordan Dyck (St. Catharines/) was a factor with 10 kills and added three blocks while James Evans (Rockwood/Warriors) and Zach Doherty had seven and six kills respectively. 

Defensively Erich Woolley (New Dundee/) had 11 digs while setter Scott Thomson (St. Marys/) collected 31 assists.

For the Blues Woodside led all players with 18.5 points on his 15 kills, two service aces and two blocks.  Jake Dysselhof (Mississauga, Ont.) also contributed to the Blues attack with eight kills while setter Michael Denton (Scarborough, Ont.) had a strong game with 36 assists while collecting a game high 15 digs.

The Warriors will now face the Western Mustangs in Hamilton at the OUA Final Four on Friday, February 22 at 5:30pm.  If you wish to attend please visit the atheltics office and sign up for the fan bus.