Pelletier comes off bench to ignite stunning rally as volleyball team licks Laval women, qualifies for Nationals
(Left to Right: Kaiva Mateus, Victoria Pelletier and Daphnee-Maude Andre-Morin. Photo by Andrew Dobrowolskyj)
QUEBEC CITY - Victoria Pelletier came off the bench to spark an unlikely rally and Marie-Christine Lapointe racked up 16 kills, three aces and five stuff blocks as McGill erased a 2-0 deficit in sets to upset No.7-ranked Laval 3-2 and win the best-of-three Quebec women's volleyball semifinal series 2-1 at the Centre PEPS, Saturday.
It was McGill's first-ever playoff series victory over the omnipotent Rouge et Or program, which will miss the CIS championship for only the second time in the last 21 years. The Martlets advanced to the conference final against the division-leading Montreal Carabins. More importantly, the Martlets automatically qualified for a berth at the CIS national championship in Hamilton, Ont., March 2-4. It's only the second time in school history that the team will be going to Nationals and the first time since 1997.
McGill had dropped the opener 3-2 in Quebec City on Friday and came-from-behind at home on Saturday to win 3-1 and force the rubber match.
After losing the first two sets 17-25 and 22-25 in the decisive match, the McGill women roared back to win 25-19, 25-23 and 15-6 in a shocker that took two hours and 15 minutes to complete.
A huge momentum shift took place in the third set when head coach Rachèle Béliveau inserted Pelletier, a third-year senior, into the game while the score was tied 8-8. The 5-foot-9 power-hitter from Westmount, Que., was a dynamo on the court, contributing eight digs, six kills, an ace, two blocks and a perfect 3.0 passing ratio.
"She has a lot of heart and determination," said Béliveau, a former Canadian Olympian who improved her career record to 450-419-2 in 21 seasons overall behind the McGill bench. "I could see that Victoria was really focussed on the bench and I felt that I had to get her into the game. She started to serve very well, played amazing in the back-court and brought a lot of drive and energy. She is the type of player that can change a game around when she is focussed and in control like that.''
Laval held a slight 51-47 advantage in kills and a 107-104 edge in digs but the difference was in McGill's blocking game, where they had a 14-8 margin.
Kaiva Mateus of Montreal West had 10 kills, seven digs and two solo blocks to go along with 10 assisted blocks. Genevieve Plante, a sophomore from Montreal, added 21 digs, six kills, an ace, one block and a 2.11 passing ratio. Marcela Mansure, a senior setter from Brazil, was credited with 39 assists and Daphnee-Maude Andre-Morin, a third-year libero from Kitchener, racked up 30 digs.
Before heading off to Nationals, the Martlets, who finished third in the four-team RSEQ conference, have some business to care of. They are headed to best-of-three Quebec final for only the third time in school history. The event will be played out over the next two weekends, beginning with Game 1 at U de M on Friday, Feb. 17. The return engagement is set for McGill on Feb. 24. If needed, Game 3 will be back at U de M on Feb. 25.
Winning the RSEQ title would give McGill a higher seed at Nationals.
"It was a great achievement to come back and beat a team like Laval on their court. We worked really hard this year and the results didn't translate into as many wins as we would've liked during the season but we stayed focussed and it finally paid off," said Béliveau. "We going to enjoy this victory right now, then calm down for a day and get back to preparing for our next challenge."
SOURCE:
Earl Zukerman
Communications Officer
Athletics & Recreation
McGill University
514-398-7012 (Tel.)
m.athletics.mcgill.ca (mobile website)
Short Box Score
Short Box Score (Match) McGill vs Laval (Feb 12, 2012 at Quebec) McGill def. Laval 17-25,22-25,25-19,25-23,15-6 McGill (Kills-aces-blocks) - Lapointe Marie 16-3-5; Mateus Kaiva 10-0-12; Pelletier Victoria 6-1-2; Plante Genevieve 6-1-1; Ng Jacqueline 4-0-1; Kyte Emily 3-0-2; Mansure Marcela 1-1-2; Pavlovic Kristina 1-0-0; Hebert Virginie 0-0-1; Totals 47-6-14.0.
ASSIST LEADER: Mansure Marcela 39. DIG LEADERS: Andre-M Daphnee-M 30; Plante Genevieve 21; Lapointe Marie 15; Mansure Marcela 11; Pelletier Victoria 8 Laval (Kills-aces-blocks) - Eve Thibault 15-0-2; Catherine Laurin 12-2-1; Esther Gilbert 10-2-1; Sophie Dallaire 6-1-3; Donna Ouellet 5-1-4; Helene Rancourt 3-0-3; Valerie Lemay 0-0-1; Totals 51-6-8.5.
ASSIST LEADER: Helene Rancourt 39. DIG LEADERS: Joany L-Bellemare 33; Eve Thibault 21; Catherine Laurin 15; Sophie Dallaire 12; Helene Rancourt 12 Site: Quebec (PEPS) Date: Feb 12, 2012 Attend: Time: 2:15
McGill vs Laval (Feb 12, 2012)
Volleyball Box Score
Volleyball Box Score McGill vs Laval (Feb 12, 2012 at Quebec) McGill | ATTACK |SET| SERVE |SRV|DEF| BLOCK |GEN ## Name GP| K E TA PCT| A| SA SE| RE|DIG|BS BA BE|BHE ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1 Pavlovic Kristina... 1| 1 1 5 .000| 0| 0 0| 0| 2| 0 0 0| 0 2 Andre-M Daphnee-M... 5| 0 0 0 .000| 0| 0 0| 2| 30| 0 0 0| 2 3 Kyte Emily.......... 3| 3 8 32 -.156| 0| 0 1| 0| 7| 0 2 0| 0 4 Pelletier Victoria.. 3| 6 2 17 .235| 0| 1 0| 0| 8| 0 2 0| 0 6 Mansure Marcela..... 5| 1 1 3 .000| 39| 1 0| 0| 11| 0 2 0| 1 7 Kobza Alexandra..... 2| 0 0 0 .000| 0| 0 0| 0| 0| 0 0 0| 0 9 Lapointe Marie...... 5| 16 5 45 .244| 1| 3 4| 2| 15| 0 5 0| 1 10 Plante Genevieve.... 5| 6 5 30 .033| 0| 1 3| 2| 21| 0 1 0| 1 12 Ng Jacqueline....... 5| 4 2 17 .118| 0| 0 0| 0| 3| 0 1 0| 0 13 Hebert Virginie..... 1| 0 0 1 .000| 0| 0 0| 0| 0| 0 1 0| 0 14 Mateus Kaiva........ 5| 10 4 30 .200| 0| 0 0| 0| 7| 2 10 0| 0 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Totals.............. 5| 47 28 180 .106| 40| 6 8| 6|104| 2 24 0| 5 TEAM ATTACK PER GAME TOTAL TEAM BLOCKS: 14.0 Game K E TA Pct 1 6 11 37 -.135 GAME SCORES 1 2 3 4 5 TEAM RECORDS 2 8 5 39 .077 McGill.............. (3) 17 22 25 25 15 3 14 7 49 .143 Laval............... (2) 25 25 19 23 6 4 12 4 37 .216 5 7 1 18 .333 Laval | ATTACK |SET| SERVE |SRV|DEF| BLOCK |GEN ## Name GP| K E TA PCT| A| SA SE| RE|DIG|BS BA BE|BHE ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4 Emilie Ducharme..... 3| 0 0 0 .000| 0| 0 0| 0| 1| 0 0 0| 0 7 Esther Gilbert...... 5| 10 12 42 -.048| 2| 2 2| 0| 6| 0 1 0| 0 8 Stephanie Alexandre. 3| 0 0 2 .000| 0| 0 0| 0| 1| 0 0 0| 0 9 Eve Thibault........ 5| 15 12 52 .058| 1| 0 1| 0| 21| 0 2 0| 0 12 Helene Rancourt..... 5| 3 0 7 .429| 39| 0 1| 0| 12| 0 3 0| 2 13 Sophie Dallaire..... 5| 6 5 21 .048| 0| 1 2| 0| 12| 1 2 0| 0 15 Valerie Lemay....... 2| 0 1 2 -.500| 0| 0 2| 0| 0| 0 1 0| 1 16 Joany L-Bellemare... 5| 0 0 0 .000| 1| 0 0| 2| 33| 0 0 0| 1 17 Catherine Laurin.... 5| 12 7 53 .094| 1| 2 1| 4| 15| 1 0 0| 1 18 Donna Ouellet....... 5| 5 0 14 .357| 1| 1 1| 0| 6| 0 4 0| 0 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Totals.............. 5| 51 37 193 .073| 45| 6 10| 6|107| 2 13 0| 5 TEAM ATTACK PER GAME TOTAL TEAM BLOCKS: 8.5 Game K E TA Pct 1 9 6 33 .091 Site: Quebec (PEPS) 2 16 7 44 .205 Date: Feb 12, 2012 Attend: Time: 2:15 3 8 10 49 -.041 Referees: 4 13 8 43 .116 5 5 6 24 -.042
Volleyball Detailed Stats
Volleyball Detailed Stats McGill vs Laval (Feb 12, 2012 at Quebec) McGill | ATTACK | ASSIST | SERVE | | BLOCKING | RECEPT | ## Name GP| K E TA Pct| A E TA Pct| SA SE TA Pct|DIG BHE| BS BA BE| 0 RE Pct| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1 Pavlovic Kristina... 1| 1 1 5 .000| 0 0 0 .000| 0 0 0 .000| 2 0| 0 0 0| 0 0 .000| 2 Andre-M Daphnee-M... 5| 0 0 0 .000| 0 0 0 .000| 0 0 0 .000| 30 2| 0 0 0| 0 2 .000| 3 Kyte Emily.......... 3| 3 8 32 -.156| 0 0 0 .000| 0 1 0 .000| 7 0| 0 2 0| 0 0 .000| 4 Pelletier Victoria.. 3| 6 2 17 .235| 0 0 0 .000| 1 0 0 .000| 8 0| 0 2 0| 0 0 .000| 6 Mansure Marcela..... 5| 1 1 3 .000| 39 0 0 .000| 1 0 0 .000| 11 1| 0 2 0| 0 0 .000| 7 Kobza Alexandra..... 2| 0 0 0 .000| 0 0 0 .000| 0 0 0 .000| 0 0| 0 0 0| 0 0 .000| 9 Lapointe Marie...... 5| 16 5 45 .244| 1 0 0 .000| 3 4 0 .000| 15 1| 0 5 0| 0 2 .000| 10 Plante Genevieve.... 5| 6 5 30 .033| 0 0 0 .000| 1 3 0 .000| 21 1| 0 1 0| 0 2 .000| 12 Ng Jacqueline....... 5| 4 2 17 .118| 0 0 0 .000| 0 0 0 .000| 3 0| 0 1 0| 0 0 .000| 13 Hebert Virginie..... 1| 0 0 1 .000| 0 0 0 .000| 0 0 0 .000| 0 0| 0 1 0| 0 0 .000| 14 Mateus Kaiva........ 5| 10 4 30 .200| 0 0 0 .000| 0 0 0 .000| 7 0| 2 10 0| 0 0 .000| Totals.............. 5| 47 28 180 .106| 40 0 0 .000| 6 8 0 .000|104 5| 2 24 0| 0 6 .000| TEAM ATTACK PER GAME TOTAL TEAM BLOCKS: 14.0 Game K E TA Pct 1 6 11 37 -.135 GAME SCORES 1 2 3 4 5 TEAM RECORDS 2 8 5 39 .077 McGill.............. (3) 17 22 25 25 15 3 14 7 49 .143 Laval............... (2) 25 25 19 23 6 4 12 4 37 .216 5 7 1 18 .333 Laval | ATTACK | ASSIST | SERVE | | BLOCKING | RECEPT | ## Name GP| K E TA Pct| A E TA Pct| SA SE TA Pct|DIG BHE| BS BA BE| 0 RE Pct| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4 Emilie Ducharme..... 3| 0 0 0 .000| 0 0 0 .000| 0 0 0 .000| 1 0| 0 0 0| 0 0 .000| 7 Esther Gilbert...... 5| 10 12 42 -.048| 2 0 0 .000| 2 2 0 .000| 6 0| 0 1 0| 0 0 .000| 8 Stephanie Alexandre. 3| 0 0 2 .000| 0 0 0 .000| 0 0 0 .000| 1 0| 0 0 0| 0 0 .000| 9 Eve Thibault........ 5| 15 12 52 .058| 1 0 0 .000| 0 1 0 .000| 21 0| 0 2 0| 0 0 .000| 12 Helene Rancourt..... 5| 3 0 7 .429| 39 0 0 .000| 0 1 0 .000| 12 2| 0 3 0| 0 0 .000| 13 Sophie Dallaire..... 5| 6 5 21 .048| 0 0 0 .000| 1 2 0 .000| 12 0| 1 2 0| 0 0 .000| 15 Valerie Lemay....... 2| 0 1 2 -.500| 0 0 0 .000| 0 2 0 .000| 0 1| 0 1 0| 0 0 .000| 16 Joany L-Bellemare... 5| 0 0 0 .000| 1 0 0 .000| 0 0 0 .000| 33 1| 0 0 0| 0 2 .000| 17 Catherine Laurin.... 5| 12 7 53 .094| 1 0 0 .000| 2 1 0 .000| 15 1| 1 0 0| 0 4 .000| 18 Donna Ouellet....... 5| 5 0 14 .357| 1 0 0 .000| 1 1 0 .000| 6 0| 0 4 0| 0 0 .000| Totals.............. 5| 51 37 193 .073| 45 0 0 .000| 6 10 0 .000|107 5| 2 13 0| 0 6 .000| TEAM ATTACK PER GAME TOTAL TEAM BLOCKS: 8.5 Game K E TA Pct 1 9 6 33 .091 Site: Quebec (PEPS) 2 16 7 44 .205 Date: Feb 12, 2012 Attend: Time: 2:15 3 8 10 49 -.041 Referees: 4 13 8 43 .116 5 5 6 24 -.042