The University of Toronto Varsity Blues women's volleyball team is set for the 2015 OUA Final Four this weekend (Feb. 20-21) at the University of Guelph.

The Road to the Final Four

The Blues earned a spot in their fourth consecutive Final Four with a 3-0 victory over the Queen's Gaels in quarter-final action this past Saturday.

As the top seed in the East, Toronto will now face the Western Mustangs in the semifinals Friday night at 8:30 p.m. Western finished the regular season in fourth place in the West and upset the first-place McMaster Marauders in their quarter-final last weekend.

With McMaster eliminated, the host Guelph Gryphons became the top seed in the West thanks to a 3-0 win over the Brock Badgers in quarters. They will face the Ottawa Gee-Gees, who defeated Ryerson 3-0 in the other East quarter-final, at 6 p.m. on Friday.

Winners of the two semifinals will vie for the OUA banner Saturday night at 8:30 p.m. The bronze medal match is set for 6 p.m.

Teams will also be competing for a spot in the national tournament. The University of Toronto is the proud host of the 2015 CIS women's volleyball championship, presented by Canuck Stuff, February 26 – March 1, at Goldring Centre for High Performance Sport. As hosts, U of T has solidified a berth, with one more berth up for grabs.

Varsity Blues Ready To Take Care of Business

U of T has won eight provincial titles in program history, last winning the banner in 2010. Under the helm of head coach Kristine Drakich, the Blues have advanced to 25 of the past 26 Final Four tournaments.

The No. 3 nationally ranked Varsity Blues finished the regular season in first place in the East with an 18-1 record. The Blues rode an 18-game win streak, dropping only four sets in the process, until Ottawa spoiled their perfect season with a narrow five-set loss in their final regular season game.

As a team, Toronto led the CIS in four major statistical categories – kills per set, attack percentage, assists per set, and points per set.

Fifth-year left side hitter Charlotte Sider led the Blues and ranked third in the OUA with 4.1 points per set. The Ottawa native also topped the team with 27 aces and averaged 3.00 digs per set as well.

Fellow veteran Jennifer Neilson provides a balanced attack on the right side. Neilson ranked second in the province with a .345 attack percentage, while averaging 3.10 kills and 3.7 points per set.

Third-year left side Caleigh Cruickshank has enjoyed a breakout year, ranking among the top 10 players in the province with 2.76 kills per set. Veteran middle Bojana Radan is a force at the net, sitting second in the OUA with 1.10 blocks per set.

Generating the attack is CIS-leading setter Madelyn Mandryk. Mandryk leads the nation, averaging 10.19 assists per set, while also registering 2.28 digs per set, with libero Denise Wooding sitting second in the OUA with 4.73 digs per set.

A Comparison:

East			West
Toronto	Ottawa		Guelph	Western
18-1 1st East	16-3 2nd East	Regular Season Record	11-8 2nd West	7-12 4th West
3-0 vs Queen's	3-0 vs Ryerson	Quarter-Final Result	3-0 vs Brock	3-1 vs McMaster
No. 3	No. 6	National Ranking	n/a	n/a
Charlotte Sider 3.34	Myriam English 3.56	Kills/Set	Madison Dedecker 2.83	Kelsey Veltman 2.55
Charlotte Sider 0.46	Kelsie English 0.59	Aces/Set	Jennifer Johnstone 0.32	Jamie Leidl 0.38
Bojana Radan 1.10	Sophie Chenail 0.77	Blocks/Set	Nicole Collard 1.04	Kelsey Veltman 1.19
Charlotte Sider 4.1	Myriam English 4.5	Points/Set	Madison Dedecker 3.3	Kelsey Veltman 3.7
Madelyn Mandryk 10.19	Kira Tome 9.91	Assists/Set	Ashleigh Andzei 6.58	Katherine Tsiofas 8.51
Denise Wooding 4.73	Stephanie Theiler 3.14	Digs/Set	Kristen Almhjell 4.42	Courtney Sestric 3.49

 
 
OUA Final Four Schedule at the University of Guelph

Friday, February 20
Ottawa vs Guelph 6:00 p.m.
Western vs Toronto 8:30 p.m.

Saturday, February 21
Bronze Medal Match 6:00 p.m.
Gold Medal Match 8:30 p.m.