Mike Tomlinson and Jackson Dakin rallied the Gaels to a crucial comeback win against the Windsor Lancers.

The men’s volleyball team posted a 1-1 record on the road this past weekend. The team fell in straight sets to their rival Western Mustangs on Saturday afternoon and beat the Lancers 3-2 on Sunday. The Gaels failed to match a Western team who moved to 10-2 this season.

“Against Western nothing was working,” Gaels head coach Brenda Willis said. “It was an extremely frustrating game for us.”

Sunday’s match showcased a grittier effort from the Gaels. After losing the first two sets, the team clawed their way back to take the final match 16-14.

“I give a lot of credit to both Jackson Dakin for distributing the ball well and Mike Tomlinson, who was absolutely on fire,” Willis said.

The comeback was led by second-year right side Tomlinson, who posted 31 kills out of 49 opportunities for an attacking efficiency of over 50 per cent.

“Tomlinson just kind of decided he was not going to be stopped by Windsor,” Willis said. “And he just went on a tear.”

The offensive explosion from Tomlinson is his season high so far and moves him into seventh place in the CIS in points per set.

“He was as good today as Joren Zeeman ever was on the right side,” Willis said, referring to the Queen’s graduate who led the Gaels to fourth in the CIS last season.

The team’s next game is against their cross-town rivals, the RMC Paladins on Friday night.