The University of Toronto Varsity Blues men's volleyball team travels to London, Ont., to battle the Western Mustangs in an OUA quarter-final showdown on Saturday evening (March 1) at 5:00 p.m.

HUGE game for your Varsity Blues men's volleyball team as they head to London, Ont., for an OUA quarter-final match-up versus the Western Mustangs this Saturday night at 5pm!

READ: https://t.co/lw5EKR1lPi

WE ALL #BLEEDBLUE #WeAreTO pic.twitter.com/7zcN3oI6yd

— U of T Varsity Blues (@Varsity_Blues) February 26, 2019

 
The winner of the match earns a berth into the OUA Final Four, which will be hosted by the highest remaining seed in the East division.
 
Toronto ended the season winning four of their last five matches. The Blues and Mustangs met just once this season in London, Ont., with the home team coming out on top, 3-1.
 
At the beginning of the season, head coach John Barrett said that third-year setter Jordan Figueria "is the engine to our team," and he has been just that. The Oakville, Ont., native orchestrates Toronto's very balanced attack, averaging 9.94 assists per set, which ranks third in the province. He also contains a very effective serve, holding the second most aces per set in the OUA (0.57).
 
There is usually a transition period for players entering the OUA, but first-year left side hitter Evan Falardeau has not missed a beat. The Stratford, Ont., leads the team with 3.16 kills per set and 3.7 points per set. He put up 24 kills and 2.5 blocks for a career-high 26.5 points against Ryerson this season. 
 
Since his transfer from Alberta, where he won a U SPORTS national title in 2014-15, outside hitter Chris Towe has boosted the team's offence. The Toronto native has nearly identical numbers to Falardeau in kills and points per set, making them a pretty good one-two punch to have in the playoffs.
 
Third-year outside hitters Alex Barnes and Nicholas Trewern are another layer to this squad. Both are registering over two kills per set and over 2.5 points per set. Fourth-year middle Austin Valjas adds stability, ranking third the province in solo blocks and sixth in total blocks. He also puts up over two points per set.
 
Similar to Toronto, Western holds many weapons at their disposal. Gianfranco Sarto, Evan Cranshaw and Brady Fidler all document over 2.4 kills and three points per set. Their two middles, Jackson Bere and Evan Hammond, are not far behind. Second-year setter Matt Hooker puts this offensive unit all together with a league-high 10.63 assist per set. 

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