A dish best served cold

By Lawrence Bailey

That feels much better.


Still stinging from a loss nine months ago in Laval, Quebec, the Dinos women’s volleyball team exacted their pound of flesh from the University of Winnipeg Wesmen Nov. 28-29, notching some impressive individual numbers in the process.


Despite not sweeping the Wesmen in six straight as they would have liked to, the Dinos battled hard, emerging triumphant 3-2 (23-25, 25-17, 25-23, 21-25, 15-11) on Friday, then cruising to a 3-1 (25-17, 19-25, 27-15, 25-19) victory Saturday.


“It was survival mode,” said Head Coach Kevin Boyles of a weekend where he was short a pair of starters and had one playing at less than 100 per cent. “We did anything we could do to survive and come out with the four points.”


With 2003 Canadian Inter- university Sport Rookie of the Year Janelle Findlay sidelined with a minor knee injury, 2003 Canada West Women’s Volleyball Player of the Year Amanda Moppett sick with the flu and starting middle Reid Brodie also sidelined with an injury, the rest of the club had to pick up the slack–and boy did they ever.


Third-year Dino Joanna Niemczewska shone, racking up 41 kills over the two matches while libero Neda Boroumand was sensational, tallying 45 digs in the two tilts.


“Jo was great, she really stepped up,” Boyles marveled. “Those [stats she put up] are guy’s stats, you just don’t see that in women’s volleyball.”


Another key to the Dinos’ success over the weekend was the inspirational play and leadership of third-year setter Natalie Schwartz.


“Nat was edgy, aggressive and tenacious all weekend,” beamed Boyles. “She simply refused to let us lose games.”


With the victories, the Dinos close out the first half of the regular season where they began it–on top. Ranked #1 in the nation 10 matches ago, the volleysaurs haven’t missed a beat, cruising to an 8-2 record and retaining their top billing.


As impressive as the first half has been for the Dinos, there is still room for improvement.


Aside from the opening weekend against the University of Alberta Pandas, they tend to come out flat in the first match of the weekend–a recipe for disaster come March and the single elimination national championships.


Also, their confidence and attitude need to jive with their ranking. It’s been repeated by player and coach alike all year: the Dinos need to play with the swagger of a #1 team. That said, they’ve definitely made strides in the right direction over the past few weekends.


“Over the last three matches, we’ve really picked up momentum,” Boyles explained. “The girls were really offended by the loss to [the University of British Columbia] and they’ve shown since then that they know how to play with the #1 ranking and sustain it.


“No great team becomes great without facing adversity.”


Rally Points:

The Dinos will get a break over the holidays to nurse their nicks and scratches, however it isn’t only a vacation. They will be part of a tournament at Mount Royal College Dec. 29-31 before returning to Canada West regular season play Jan. 9-10 as they host the University of Saskatchewan Huskies.