Royals Comeback

Douglas Royals 3
VIU Mariners 2

It was easily the best match of the tournament so far as the Royals came back to beat the Mariners for a measure of revenge on Friday night.

The Royals gained momentum in the match, winning the first set 25-20 in front of a pro-Mariner crowd at VIU.  Offensively both teams are extremely gifted and showed they are evenly matched with big swings from Marvin Tumusiime and Niko Robbles on the Royals side with the Mariners countering with Colby Soolsma and Rylan Van Kooten.

In the second the Mariners used the crowd to their advantage and pulled away for a 25-16 win to even the match.  They used that momentum in the third set and used extra points to win 26-24, giving them a 2-1 set lead in the match.

In the fourth the Royals started their comeback and played with confidence continuing to feed Tumusiime and Robbles.  When they needed points from others, Lucas Sansone and Nathan Howden-Duke stepped up with outstanding play at the net, changing how the Mariners would attack. The Royals took advantage and never looked back winning 25-19 to force a decisive set.

In the fifth, the Royals carried the play and momentum to a 15-9 victory to complete the comeback.  This win, at VIU, is a measure of revenge after losing in five sets last year at Douglas.

The Royals advance to the gold medal match against the COTR Avalanche on Saturday at 8:00pm and have punched their ticket to the CCAA nationals at the same time.   The Mariners will meet the Camsoun Chargers for bronze at 3:00pm.

Players of the Match:

Royals: Marvin Tumusiime

Mariners: Colby Soolsma