Reds Fall To No. 3 Laval

(FREDERICTON, NB) The U SPORTS No. 3 ranked Laval Rouge et Or rallied from a set down to beat the UNB Reds 3-1 on Friday night, at UNB's Richard J. Currie Center.

The Reds displayed strong net play and tough defence, leading Laval 16-12 at the technical time-out of the first set. UNB dominated the remainder of the opening set, winning 25-17.

In the second set, the Rouge et Or showed some swagger, building a 15-8 lead. But a Reds time-out worked to perfection, as UNB closed the gap with a 5-0 run. Laval led 16-13 at the technical time-out, and won the set 25-21.

The back-and-forth play continued in the third, but Laval's power game was an advantage and the visitors took a 25-20 win.

The Reds staged a rally in the fourth set, leading 16-8 at the technical time-out. But the Rouge et Or stormed back. The set was tied at 23, 24, 25, and 26, before Laval strung the final two points together, winning the fourth 28-26, and the match 3-1.

Nicolas Fortin (La Malbaie, QC) led Laval with a match-high 25 kills. Remi Cadoret (Gatineau, QC) and Philippe Giroux (Quebec City, QC) had 14 and 13 digs respectively.

"The changes we made on the court, we brought more energy, and that helped us keep fighting and grinding until the end," said Laval's Ludovic Martin (Quebec City, QC). "We're really happy we were able to come back in the fourth set. It's something we've struggled with before."

Connor McConnell (Hanwell, NB) led the Reds with 17 kills, while Drew Duncan (Winnipeg, MB) registered 12 digs.

"We started well, but I'm not sure what broke down in the middle," said Reds veteran middle Brad Stewart (Wolfville, NS). "We had some aspects that were running really well, but our serving broke down in the second set and that really killed us. We were beating ourselves. We should've been able to keep up with them."

The Reds and the Rouge et Or complete their weekend series on Saturday. Game time is 2:30pm Atlantic.

RECAP BY: Andy Campbell/UNB Athletics

PHOTOS BY: James West/for UNB Athletics