Box Score What a great way to start the season – a great match and a big win.

That was the scenario for the Nipissing Lakers men's volleyball team Saturday night, as they earned a hard-fought 3-1 win over the York Lions at the RJS Athletic Centre as both teams began the 2018-19 season.

After splitting the first two sets, the Lakers gained momentum and picked up wins in the third and fourth sets to claim the match victory.

The match started with a thriller as both teams came out flying, looking to grab the upper hand and set the tone.

Nipissing was able to jump out to a 16-11 lead at the technical timeout.

They extended that advantage to 21-18 late in the set and held on for a 25-23 win to go ahead.

In the second set, the scores reversed as York earned a 16-10 lead at the technical timeout, pushed their gap to 22-14 and eventually came away with a 25-16 victory in the second set.

With the matched tied 1-1, the third set and momentum were up for grabs.

Nipissing snuck out a 16-15 lead at the technical timeout and worked their way to a 25-20 win to move closer to a match victory.

Looking to put the game away, Nipissing came out strong and led 9-6 early in the fourth quarter, but a pushback by the Lions saw the set even at 16-16.

As the two teams went down to the wire, it was the Lakers who had a little extra in the tank, coming away with a 25-21 win in the fourth set and a 3-1 win in the match.

Nipissing will look to make it two in a row when they host the Trent Excalibur next Saturday at 5pm at the RJS Athletic Centre.