End of the Semester

Saturday evening marked the end of the first semester for the Humber College men’s volleyball team in Windsor, Ontario. Boy can you really tell that most of the guys need a break. Their body language, demeanor on the court, lack of energy, and the tension starting to grow among each other are always signs that it’s time for a break. Even high-powered teams, which I believe Humber is, are entitled to a let down once in a while. If you were to solely base the result on scores you would think that the team rolled right through the St. Clair Saints in straight sets (25-18, 25-12, 25-20), but if you watched the match which I did, then you would agree with me that the team did not look as focused as a team looking to repeat should. Once again it was Terrel Bramwell doing most of the scoring and carrying the team, especially in the first set when the score was tight before reeling off 4 aces to separate the teams. You have to feel for Terrel because the team looks to him to carry most of the offensive load every game and you can see the frustration on his face when the team does not play well. It would be a lot different if the team had no talent but we’re talking about the defending OCAA champs, which have multiple players at every position that could start on every other team in the OCAA. You would expect players to step up and help shoulder the load but the mentality of the team right now is to rely on Terrel. Volleyball is very much a team game; you cannot win with just one player, two players, and three players doing all the work. It has to be a collective effort to win. It’s a beautiful thing when you watch a game, whether its basketball, football, soccer and you can see things clicking among teammates and everyone is playing well. Thank goodness it’s the end of the first semester for the Hawks as they can take this time to study up for exams, rest any injuries they may have and get themselves ready for a run at the OCAA championships and a CCAA Gold medal.

Bouncing Back From Defeat

On November 24^th, the Humber men’s volleyball team suffered it’s first loss of the season to the number two ranked Fanshawe Falcons in a close battle going five sets in London, Ontario. The Hawk’s were without All- Canadian Terrel Bramwell but were still very much in the game and had many of opportunities to win.  It’s always tough suffering your first loss of the season as well as losing the top spot in the province and falling in the national rankings in the process. Many of the players were upset with their individual performances feeling like they had let down the team. When your big gun or game changer is out (Terrel), it’s up to others to step up in his absence and cease the opportunity. This wasn’t the case and the result was Humber’s first loss. When you get knocked down, it’s all about getting back up and bouncing back from defeat. Humber’s next opponent was a home game against the Redeemer Royals from Ancaster, Ontario on November 30^th. The team was looking to get back on track having Terrel back in the lineup and looked very good in warm up and the beginning of the first set. However, unforced errors allowed Redeemer to get back in the set ultimately winning the first set forcing Humber again to regroup. Humber won the second and third set very easily with Terrel carrying the Hawks as he usually does. Redeemer not backing down from a challenge managed to take the fourth set forcing a 5^th and deciding set. Humber again regrouped and won the fifth set in deciding fashion 15-8 taking the match 3-2. Terrel Bramwell had the game of his career to date breaking the OCAA record for most points in a match with 40. Although not playing their best, the team managed to pull out a win bouncing back from a previous defeat. Here’s a link to read more. http://tinyurl.com/3x9vojt