The Ryerson men’s volleyball team won their home opener last Friday against the defending champs, the McMaster Marauders.
     
The first and second sets played out the same. The Marauders led both matches for the most part, with the Rams closing in behind. In the end, Ryerson was able to close the gap and finish with a win off of each set. Ryerson won the first set 26-24, and the second 25-23.
     
In the following two sets, the defending champs gained their momentum, taking an early lead and expanding further while Ryerson was unable to respond. The Marauders took the third set 25-12, and the fourth 25-19, dragging the Rams to a fifth and final set to determine the victor.
     
The fifth, nail-biter was a tough battle for both sides. The lead changed numerous times throughout the match, with neither team pulling away by more than a point, until it neared the end. Rams fans were put further on edge when the Marauders pulled away 13-10, with just two points to victory.
     
In the end rookie Marc Reardon showed that he was able to work under pressure, aiding the Rams to tie it up at 13 a piece.   The score was then tied at 14 a piece, and 15 a piece, before Alexander Dawson, also a rookie, grabbed the two remaining points for the Rams with a kill and an ace serve.
     
And how do they feel? “Simply amazing. There are no words to describe it really,” said Mirek Porosa, head coach. “They beat them with skills. It’s not like (MAC) played bad. We played tough until the end.”

Captain Robert Earl would agree. “It’s fantastic. It’s euphoric,” he said. “No one wants to leave the gym. Everyone’s super happy and it’s a lot of fun.”
     
This evens out the Rams record at 2-2 and the team is looking ahead in confidence.

“It’s a good indicator because our last two games, we lost to Guelph and Waterloo, and we were right there with them,” said Earl, “now it just proves that we can play with any of these guys.”

Brian Batista Bettencourt, a transfer student and rookie to the team, feels good that the team was able to cope under pressure. “We’re a very young team, so it’s a big learning curb and a learning process,” said Bettencourt. “But, we put in our dues and I think it showed today in the match, beating the defending OUA champs in five sets. Especially doing it at home in the home opener.”
   
With a roster made up of mainly first and second-year students, with the exception of five players, the team looks like it can only grow in strength as time goes on. “Moving forward, we obviously have a lot of good young talent here and we did a great job recruiting,” said Earl.
    
For now, Porosa is happy with the young talent, a team able to work under pressure, and the home-opening victory.
    
“Only time will show what this win means, but it’s a huge historic win for us,” said Porosa. “We haven’t beat (MAC) in four or five years.”