Volleyball Voices

Junior Rachel Krabacher To Compete On US National A2 Program This Summer

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KRABACHER SELECTED TO U.S. NATIONAL A2 PROGRAM
Junior Rachel Krabacher Will Compete With 36 Of The Best Players In the Nation

Dayton: http://www.daytonflyers.com/womens/volleyball/news/index.html?article_id=7828
USA Volleyball: http://usavolleyball.org/news/2011/03/17/usa-volleyball-names-u-s-womens-a2-program-roster/41461

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – USA Volleyball announced the addition of junior Rachel Krabacher to the 2011 U.S. Women’s National A2 Program roster this weekend. Krabacher and Dayton Head Coach Kelly Sheffield – one of the A2 Program’s three head coaches – will begin competing with 36 of the nation’s best college volleyball players this week in Dallas, Texas.

Krabacher, a Cincinnati native, started in all 31 matches as Dayton’s primary outside hitter in 2010, guiding the Flyers to back-to-back Atlantic 10 Conference regular season and tournament titles and the team’s fourth consecutive trip to the NCAA Championship. Krabacher finished the 2010 campaign with 10 double-doubles while averaging 2.75 kills per set and a team-best 0.30 aces per set.

Sheffield was selected as one of the U.S. A2 Program head coaches on March 16. Also serving as head coaches for the U.S. A2 Program will be Ohio State Head Coach Geoff Carlston and LSU Head Coach Fran Flory.

The U.S. Women’s National A2 Program will take place in Dallas from May 23 through June 1. The program includes training and competition in the 2011 USA Volleyball Open National Championships in the Open Division from May 28-31. USA Volleyball considers the event as the National Championship for the sport of volleyball in the United States. Athletes selected to the U.S. Women’s National A2 Program were selected from the U.S. Women’s National Team Open Tryouts held Feb. 25-27 at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs. A record 204 athletes participated in the three-day tryouts, representing 81 different college programs.

During the preliminary training sessions the A2 coaching staff will divide the 36 players into three teams of 12 players to compete in the USA Volleyball Open National Championships. Last year, two A2 teams competed in the Open Division, producing a gold and bronze medal.

It is the third consecutive season that Dayton has been represented with the U.S. A2 Program. Three-time All-American Lindsay Fletemier competed with the program in 2009 and 2010. Fletemier was a member of the A2's Blue Team in 2010, which won a gold medal in the 2010 USA Volleyball Open National Championships Open Division.

2011 U.S. Women’s National A2 Program Roster
Name (College, Position, Height, College Years Left, Hometown)
Rachael Adams (Texas, MB, 6-2, 1, Cincinnati, Ohio)
Cassandra Anderson (Florida, MB, 6-1, 1, Bakersfield, Calif.)
Ashley Bannister (Texas, OH, 6-1, 3, Sugar Land, Texas)
Brianne Barker (Oklahoma, S, 5-9, 1, Amarillo, Texas)
Michelle Bartsch (Illinois, OPP, 6-4, 1, Maryville, Ill.)
Kelsey Black (Texas A&M, OH, 5-11, 1, Amarillo, Texas)
Alaina Bergsma (Oregon, OH, 6-3, 2, Chandler, Ariz.)
Jennifer Bonilla (Illinois, L, 5-9, 3, Reseda, Calif.)
Taylor Brauneis (Louisville, S, 5-10, 3, Crystal Lake, Ill.)
Brittney Brimmage (Missouri, MB, 6-3, 1, East St. Louis, Ill.)
Morgan Broekhuis (Nebraska, OPP, 6-5, 3, Colorado Springs, Colo.)
Kelli Fiegen (South Dakota State, MB, 6-3, 2, Parkston, S.D.)
Ashley Frazier (Kentucky, OH, 6-1, 2, Oregon, Ohio)
Natalie Hagglund (Southern California, L, 5-9, 3, Encinitas, Calif.)
Cursty Jackson (Arizona, MB, 6-1, 1, Los Angeles, Calif.)
Kristy Jaeckel (Florida, OH, 6-2, 1, Littleton, Colo.)
Kayla Jeter (Tennessee, OH, 5-11, 1, Solon, Ohio)
Correy Johnson (California, MB, 6-4, 2, Winter Park, Fla.)
Madison Kingdon (Arizona, OH, 6-0, 4, Phoenix, Ariz.)
Michelle Kocher (Texas, S, 5-10, 1, Wheaton, Ill.)
Rachel Krabacher (Dayton, OH, 6-4, 2, Cincinnati, Ohio)
Alexis Mathews (Michigan State, MB, 6-4, 3, Detroit, Mich.)
Monique Mead (Georgia Tech, OPP, 5-9, 2, Newnan, Ga.)
Kelly Murphy (Florida, S, 6-2, 1, Wilmington, Ill.)
Tarah Murrey (California, OH, 6-3, 1, El Cerrito, Calif.)
Lauren Plum (Oregon, S, 5-9, 3, Poway, Calif.)
Ashley Rhoades (New Mexico, MB, 5-11, 1, Rio Rancho, N.M.)
Kelsey Robinson (Tennessee, L, 6-2, 3, Bartlett, Ill.)
Gwen Rucker (Louisville, MB, 6-2, 1, Lexington, Ky.)
Francesca Silva (Notre Dame, L, 5-3, 1, Laguna Nigel, Calif.)
Carly Thomas (Missouri State, S, 5-11, 3, Swansea, Ill.)
Ariel Turner (Purdue, OH, 6-1, 2, Highlands Ranch, Colo.)
Colleen Ward (Illinois, OH, 6-3, 1, Naperville, Ill.)
Carli Weiler (Michigan State, L, 5-4, 1, Oak Lawn, Ill.)
Allegra Wells (Mississippi, OPP, 6-1, 2, Garland, Texas)
 

Duke Volleyball Player Nailah Waterfield to Keep Blog of Trip to Ghana

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Duke Volleyball Player Nailah Waterfield to Keep Blog of Trip to Ghana

May 23, 2011

ACCRA, Ghana – Duke volleyball player Nailah Waterfield is participating in the “Duke in Ghana” Global Education for Undergraduates program this summer, and she will keep a daily blog chronicling her time on the west coast of Africa.

To follow Waterfield’s experience, visit her “Duke in Ghana” blog at the following link:
http://sites.duke.edu/dukeghana2011/author/naw12duke-edu/

An excerpt from Waterfield’s journal is below. Waterfield made the trip with several of her Duke classmates as well as students from N.C. Central University and the University of Georgia. Waterfield’s trip began on May 18, and she will stay in Ghana until June 29. During that time, she will attend the University of Ghana at Legon which is just outside of the capital city of Accra.

To learn more about Duke's "Duke in Ghana" program, click here:
http://studyabroad.duke.edu/home/Programs/Summer/Duke_in_Ghana

-----------------------------------------------

Coach Howser aint got nothin on African Dance
Posted on May 21, 201 by Nailah Waterfield

Yesterday morning we had our first African dance class. 9 A.M. bright and early. After taking my six week warm up course in my Baldwin seminar I at least knew how to dress apropriately. Showed up barefoot, with my water bottle, nike running shirt, and T-shirt. It was all laughs and smiles as the danceres who had just performed for us the night before were now asking us about our hometowns and college. After everyone trickled in the lead dancer, a young lean man with beautiful dreads about as long as my brothers played the original exercise trick on us all. “Well, lets get warmed up”

The drummers got going and before we knew it we were running around the room doing all the “basic” African dance moves. The first 5 minutes was a great time. I was smiling, laughing, really getting into it. Minute 6 I was a little winded. Minute 7 I was dripping sweat. Minute 8 my legs were giving out. Minute 9 I was browning out. Minute 10 I was close to death. This went on for 20 minutes.

After our “warm up” was done, we began to learn a routine. This was gonna be the easy part right? Wrong. This was even tougher. I was front row center. Meaning there were 25 people behind me watching. I was trying really hard to pretend I wasn’t tired. But teammates, you know when Howser is getting real tough and he knows it’s getting tough. When he’s looking you in the eyes trying to figure out how much pain you are in and when it stops. Of course wanting to push you but the sweet heart of his never wants to hurt you. Well there I was, front and center, doing a level 7 Howser, while this ripped African man was standing right in front of me dripping sweat with the biggest smile in the world on his face. He was so blinded by his love for what he was doing to imagine we were dying. Crazy but refreshing.

To read the rest of this post, click the link below:
http://sites.duke.edu/dukeghana2011/2011/05/21/coach-howser-aint-got-nothin-on-african-dance/

-d-u-k-e-

Santa Clara Volleyball Team Wins In Three At Notre Dame

Santa Clara Volleyball Team Wins In Three At Notre Dame

 

Behind the 15 kills of sophomore Kayla Lommori, Santa Clara defeated Notre Dame in straight sets in on Saturday night in the feature match of the Notre Dame Invitational.  Game scores were 25-18, 25-19 and 26-24.   Santa Clara moves to 8-4 and Notre Dame falls to 7-4.
Santa Clara plays Delaware in its final match of the Notre Dame Invitational Sunday morning at 8:30 am Pacific prior to returning to California. Santa Clara will then host Seattle Sun., Sept. 26 at 1 pm in the Leavey Center before opening WCC play vs. LMU on Thurs., Sept. 30 and Pepperdine on Sat., Oct. 2.
"The girls played really hard. We started poorly in game one and after we called timeout early, they came out with a spark and played really well from then on," said Bronco head coach Jon Wallace.  "We played aggressive throughout and I don't think Notre Dame was not as aggressive.  We got down in set three, but we showed maturity, rode the storm and battled to win in three sets."
Wallace said there were two keys: the team stayed steady throughout the match and believed they could compete against Notre Dame.  "We had girls make plays - everyone made plays. It's a nice win for us.  We came out to Notre Dame; and they have showed us great hospitality as a fellow Catholic/Jesuit school on a big home football weekend.  Notre Dame is a good team. Our athletic director, Dan Coonan, graduated from Notre Dame and so we know it means a lot to him and the girls certainly know that and are pumped for us to get the win for him."
"Kayla Lommori played great," added Wallace. "She was a much smarter hitter on the outside tonight. She made great shots and tips. We thought in looking at the scouting report, Tanya Schmidt could have a big night and she rose to the occasion."
Wallace smiled big when asked about the play of the night. It happened in the third set with Santa Clara up 25-24.  "Ali Rambis came in with a great serve and then she pancaked the ball for us and then Notre Dame made a hitting error to end the match. She did a real nice job serving and playing in the back row."  Santa Clara fans may remember Rambis' father, all-time leading scorer Kurt Rambis.
Santa Clara has an early wake-up call tomorrow as it plays at 8:30 am Pacific against Delaware in its last match of the Notre Dame Invitational.  "It's going to be tough to play at 8:30 am, but if you asked the girls now, they are pretty pumped and want to play well tomorrow," said Wallace.  "Delaware is a good team.  They don't make mistakes and we will have to earn a lot.  We do play early, but I think we will be ready."
Santa Clara hit .244 with 45 kills (16 e, 119 att.), 58 digs and 42 assists. They collected 5.5 team blocks and three service aces.  Notre Dame hit .096 with 38 kills (25e, 136 att.), 51 digs and 35 assists. They collected 10 team blocks and three service aces.
Lommori led all hitters with 15 kills and collected eight digs.  Kaleigh Durket had 11 kills, hitting .231 with five digs.  Tanya Schmidt hit .421 with nine kills and two aces.  Emily Burke collected 39 assists, eight digs and two kills.  Notre Dame, who had no one in double-digit kills, was led by Kellie Sciacca's nine kills and six block assists.  Kristen Dealy collected eight kills with five errors and 14 digs.
In the first set Santa Clara took a 2-1 lead off an Irish ball handling error and a Lommori kill.  The Irish scored five straight, including two kills and an ace by Andrea McHugh, taking a 6-2 lead.  Wallace whistled for a timeout.  After the timeout, an Irish error gave SCU the ball; and Santa Clara scored three straight of four to tie it up 7-7.  The two teams tied up three more times, including 10-10. Santa Clara scored four straight points on kills by Schmidt, Durket and Lommori and a team block by Lommori and Schmidt.  Timeout Irish.  Santa Clara then scored three of the next four points on Irish errors and kill by Schmidt, taking a 17-11 lead.  UND quieted the rally with a Sciacca kill and then an Irish team block; and Durket quieted that rally with her own kill, 18-13 SCU.  Two straight Irish points and Durket knocked down another kill and then one by Burke to push SCU to 20-15.  Trading points, a Knudsen kill and an Irish error gave SCU a 22-16 advantage.  The Irish called their second timeout of the set; and after a Nicole Smith kill, Lommori knocked one down to put SCU up 23-17.  An Irish hitting error and another Schmidt kill, her fourth of the set, and Santa Clara won game one 25-18.  Santa Clara hit .400 in game one with 16 kills.  They were led by Schmidt and Lommori, who scored four kills each .  The Irish hit .182 with 12 kills.  Santa Clara out-blocked UND 4-1.
In the second start, Santa Clara jumped ahead 4-2, mainly Irish errors (one kill to four errors early on).  A team block by Knudsen and Durket, an Irish kill and then a Durket kill made it 6-3 Broncos.  The two teams traded points twice, including a Knudsen kill and a hitting error, pushing it to 7-6 Broncos.    Schmidt knocked smacked a kill to make it 10-7 Broncos. Lommori quieted the four-point Irish run with a kill down the line to tie it up 11-11.  A Durket kill after one by the Irish tied it up 12-12.  An attack error by Andrea McHugh, another Durket kill, her sixth of the match, and a ball handling error by the Irish and SCU went up 15-12.  Out of an Irish timeout, UND scored five of the next six points to take a 17-16 lead. Santa Clara rallied with Burke dumping the ball, a Lommori kill, her seventh of the match, and a Lexi Williamson ace, giving SCU a 19-17 lead.  After the Irish whistled for their second timeout of the set, Kristen Dealy made an attacking error and Lommori scored four kills in the next five plays, 24-18 Broncos.  Lommori had 11 kills in the match already with just two errors.  Burke had a ball handling error and then Schmidt knocked down her second straight set winner to give SCU set two, 25-19.  Santa Clara hit .182 with 16 kills. The Irish hit .049 with nine kills and seven errors.  Lommori had seven kills in the set.
After the Irish ran out to a 5-1 lead, Wallace called timeout to rally the Bronco group.  The Irish scored two straight and then Santa Clara scored three straight before an Irish team block and kill put Notre Dame up 9-5.  Durket battled for her ninth kill of the match and an Irish error stopped the rally with the Irish up 9-7.  The Irish scored four of the next five points to take a 13-8 lead.  After McHugh's attack error, her fifth of the match to go with five kills, another Irish error and a kill by Durket; and it was 14-11 Irish.  SCU won four of the next five points. That span included Schmidt putting down her seventh kill of the match, a Bronco team block and an Irish attack error by Kristen Dealy to tie it up 15-15.  Timeout Irish.  The Irish scored three of the next five points move forward 18-16.  The Irish went up 20-18 on another Sciacca kill.  Lommori's 14th kill of the match tied it up 20-20.  Santa Clara took the lead, 21-20, on a McHugh hitting error.  After the Irish called timeout for the second time in the set, Santa Clara set the block to take a 23-21 lead.  A Hillary Eppink kill was followed by her own hitting error put SCU up 24-22.  A kill by Dealy gave the Irish hope at 24-23 Broncos.  An Irish ace tied it up 24-24 and the Broncos called timeout.  Smith hit it into the net and SCU went up 25-24.  Santa Clara won set three 26-24 on Irish hitting error.  Santa Clara hit .200 in set three, collecting 13 kills. Notre Dame hit .081 with 17 kills and 12 errors.

Bowling Green State University Volleyball Team: Falcons Sweep Robert Morris To Complete Weekend

Bowling Green State University volleyball team: Falcons Sweep Robert Morris To Complete Weekend
 
Pittsburgh, Pa. – The Bowling Green State University volleyball team completed a 3-1 weekend at Pittsburgh’s Blue and Gold Invitational with a 25-22, 25-19, 25-20 sweep of Robert Morris Saturday evening. The Falcons improved to 5-9 on the season with the win and Robert Morris fell to 3-12.
 
Paige Penrod, who was named to the all-tournament team, and Noelle Spitler had 11 kills each as the Falcons held a 42-35 edge in kills. Danielle Tonyan added nine on a .471 attack percentage.
 
Bowling Green never trailed by more than one point in the entire match, jumping out early and holding off any comeback attempts.
 
Ashley Dunn had a match-high 20 digs and Laura Avila handed out a match-best 21 assists. Spitler added two aces and two blocks to her 11 kills and Emily Kauth finished with seven kills and three blocks, while hitting .462.
 
Bowling Green will now try to continue its solid play as the Falcons open Mid-American Conference play this weekend. BGSU will play at Akron Friday at 7 p.m. and at Buffalo Saturday at 5 p.m.

Ball State Women's Volleyball Team Rallies Past Appalachian State

Ball State Women's Volleyball Team Rallies Past Appalachian State

 

 CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - - The Ball State (10-2) women’s volleyball team rallied from two sets down to score a thrilling 3-2 (22-25, 12-25, 25-17, 25-22, 15-9) victory over Appalachian State (9-3) Saturday evening in the team’s final match of the 2010 Tar Heel Classic hosted by North Carolina.
   The come-from-behind victory was the Cardinals first when trailing by two sets since the end of the 2003 season, when Ball State earned a hard-fought 3-2 (23-30, 29-31, 30-21, 30-26, 18-16) win over No. 17 Louisville on its home court.
   “The last three sets were the best we have played all year,” said head coach Steve Shondell. “It was a great comeback victory and a wonderful way to finish the tournament. We had a combination that played really well together after a couple of changes following game two. The combination clicked and played with great determination and Ball State pride in the final three games to pull off an amazing victory.”
   Overall, three Cardinals finished the match with double-digit kills with 15 each from freshman outside hitter Whitney Heeres (Flushing, Mich./Flushing Senior H.S.) and junior middle blocker Jennifer Boyd (Evans City, Pa./Seneca Valley H.S.), while fellow junior middle blocker Kelsey Brandl (Lakeville, Minn./Lakeville North H.S.) added 12.
   In addition to her 12 kills, Brandl led the Cardinals with five total blocks (two solo and three assists), while Boyd added two block assists.
   Freshman setter Jacqui Seidel (St. Charles, Ill./St. Charles East H.S.) guided the Cardinals’ comeback, setting the final three sets, guiding BSU to a .260 (39-12-104) rate of success in the final three frames. In the final set, Ball State connected for a .500 (9-0-18) mark. Seidel also tallied career-bests of three aces, 34 assists and eight digs.
   In the backcourt, senior libero Alyssa Rio (Wayne, Ill./St. Francis H.S.) led all players with 22 digs, while freshmen Kylee Baker (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield North) and Catie Fredrich (Menomonee Falls, Wis./Menomonee Falls H.S.) added 12 each.
   For their efforts in the two-day tournament, Heeres and Rio were named to the all-tournament team.
   Ball State secured the come-from-behind victory despite being out-hit .235 (64-24-170) to .185 (59-26-178), out-dug 76 to 71 and out-blocked 15 to seven. BSU did hold the advantage from the service line, with eight aces compared to two for the Mountaineers.
   Kelly Rhein led the ASU attack with 17 kills, while Maggie Seeds added 14 and Meghann Forshey collected 11. Courtney Rhein led the Mountaineers with 19 digs, while K. Rhein added 12 digs for a double-double.
   The Mountaineers opened the match strong, scoring the first three points and building a five-point advantage at 9-4. The lead remained five at the 15-10 mark, before some strong play from Baker - two kills and an ace - helped rally the Cardinals to a 16-16 tie.
   However, back-to-back kills from ASU’s Alison Blasingame swung the momentum back to the Mountaineers, as they went on to win the set 25-22 on a kill from Seeds. BSU would get as close as one at 22-21, only to see Appalachian State score three of the final four points.
   Appalachian State got off to another quick start in the second set, using three blocks and an ace to force an early Ball State timeout at 4-0. ASU added five of the next six points, pulling ahead 9-1, before winning the set 25-12.
   The Cardinals used an ASU attack error and a kill from Heeres to take this first lead of the match at 2-0 to open the third set. After the Mountaineers tied the score at three, the Cardinals collected four straight points, including a service ace from Kaylee Schembra (Indianapolis, Ind./Roncalli H.S.), to pull ahead 7-3.
   Moments later, kills from Charde’ Phillips (Elyria, Ohio/Elyria H.S.) and Baker forced an Appalachian State timeout at 11-5. Several rallies later, a Heeres kill extended the BSU lead to eight at 14-6. The eight-point advantage was short-lived, however, as ASU battled back within four to cause a BSU timeout at 15-11.
   After the timeout, the Cardinals used a kill and solo block from Brandl, as well as an ace from Seidel, to reclaim the eight-point edge at 19-11. From there, a Heeres kill gave BSU set-point at 24-17, while a Baker ace ended the frame at 25-17.
   Ball State jumped out to a 3-0 lead behind a block from Heeres and Brandl, plus another Seidel ace, to open the fourth frame. BSU eventually extended the lead to five points at 7-2, only to see the Mountaineers rally back and tie the score at nine.
   With the score tied at 10, four kills from Brandl over the next six rallies helped the Cardinals reclaim a four-point edge at 15-11. ASU answered back once again, tying the frame at 16. From there, the teams battled to a 21-21 stalemate before a Appalachian State attach error and a block from Brandl and Seidel led to an ASU timeout at 23-21.
   Two rallies later, a kill from Heeres gave BSU set-point at 24-22, while a Seidel service ace, her third of the night, ended the frame at 25-22.
   The teams traded the first seven points of the fifth game, before a kill from Boyd gave BSU the first two-point lead at 5-3. A kill from Heeres off the Appalachian State block gave the Cardinals an 8-6 lead at the court switch. While kills from ASU’s Seeds and Forshey knotted the score at eight, back-to-back attack errors and another Boyd kill forced the Mountaineers to use their final timeout trailing 11-8.
   A block from Brandl and Boyd after the brake extended the lead to four, while an attack error pushed it to five at 13-8. A Brandl kill gave the Cardinals match-point at 14-9, while an ASU ball handling error completed the Cardinals biggest comeback since the end of the 2003 season.
   The Ball State women’s volleyball team returns to action Friday, when it opens Mid-American Conference with a 7 p.m. (CT) first serve at Northern Illinois. BSU continues MAC play Saturday, with another 7 p.m. start at Western Michigan.
 

FIU Volleyball Team: Panthers Win Ninth Straight Five-Set Match with 3-2 Victory over Tulane

FIU Volleyball Team: Panthers Win Ninth Straight Five-Set Match with 3-2 Victory over Tulane
 
 
NEW ORLEANS (Sept. 18, 2010) – The FIU volleyball team remains undefeated in five-set matches for 2010 as the Panthers defeated Tulane, 3-2 (25-23, 21-25, 25-18, 11-25, 17-15), on Saturday night at the Allstate Sugar Bowl Collegiate Classic in New Orleans. The victory marks FIU’s ninth consecutive five-set win, dating back to the middle of the 2008 season.
 
With the win, FIU improves to 6-6 while Tulane falls to 4-8 on the year, as freshman Una Trkulja and senior Natalia Valentin were named to the Allstate Sugar Bowl Collegiate Classic All-Tournament Team for their efforts over the weekend.
 
Set one saw eight tie scores and three lead changes, with the final tie coming at 23-23. A kill by senior Ines Medved made it 24-23, bringing FIU within set-point position and forcing a Tulane timeout before junior Andrea Lakovic came through for a kill to give FIU a 25-23 set win and a 1-0 lead for the match.
 
Both squads came to play in the second stanza as there were four tie scores and a pair of lead changes with the last tie coming at 20-20. Tulane would then score four straight points to put itself in set-point position, before Lakovic tallied a kill to put the score at 24-21. A Green Wave kill then put it away as Tulane took the set, 25-21, and tied the match at 1-1.
 
FIU took control of the third set, as the Panthers took a 20-10 advantage and never looked back. Tulane got within four at 22-18, but FIU recorded the final three points of the set to go ahead 2-1for the contest on the strength of a 25-18 set win.
 
Set four saw Tulane take control, building a 23-9 advantage. A Green Wave service error then made it 23-10 and the squad would trade points to put the score at 24-11 before a final kill by Tulane knotted the contest at 2-2 with a 25-11 set victory.
 
The decisive set saw nine tie scores and three lead changes with both squads battling to a 15-15 tie. Medved recorded a kill to put FIU on top, 16-15, and a score by Lakovic gave FIU a 17-15 set win and a 3-2 match victory.
 
A pair of Panthers recorded double-digit kills on the night as Trkulja led FIU with 18 kills and Lakovic recorded 15 kills. Trkulja recorded her second double-double of the day and third for her career with the addition of a career-high 12 digs to her stat line, and Valentin posted her fourth double-double of the season with a team-high 46 assists and 10 digs. Trkulja also led the Panthers in service aces with four.
 
Defensively, redshirt sophomore Rachel Fernandez led FIU in the digs category for the second straight match with 14 digs and Gonzalez posted a team-best three blocks on the night.
 
FIU will host Sun Belt Conference foe Denver on Friday, Sept. 24, as the Panthers welcome the Pioneers in the 2010 home opener at the U.S. Century Bank Arena. First serve is set for 6:30 p.m. Live stats will be available at www.fiusports.com and fans can follow @FIUVolleyball for on Twitter for live updates.
 
 

University of New Mexico Volleyball Team: Lobo Volleyball Wins Hilton Garden Inn Invitational

University of New Mexico Volleyball Team: Lobo Volleyball Wins Hilton Garden Inn Invitational
Meeter Named MVP of tournament; Rhoades and Hadfield also on all-tournament team

TAMPA, Fla. --- The University of New Mexico volleyball team wrapped up the non-conference portion of the regular season with a tournament championship at the Hilton Garden Inn Invitational hosted by South Florida in Tampa.  UNM beat Jacksonville, 3-0 and Florida Atlantic, 3-1 on Saturday to win the event and improve to 8-5 on the season.  Senior Lisa Meeter was named the Most Valuable Player of the tournament, while senior Taylor Hadfield and junior Ashley Rhoades joined her on the All-Tournament team.

New Mexico started the day with a 25-22, 25-21, 25-18 win over Jacksonville.  The teams stayed within a point of each other to a 16-16 tie in the first set.  The Lobos finally were able to build to a 20-17 lead and kept the Dolphins away to 25-22.  In the second set, UNM pulled away from a 5-5 tie to take a 16-10 lead.  JU cut the Lobo lead to three several times late in the set, but UNM held on to the 25-21 win.  UNM didn’t waste any time in the third set.  The Lobos built an 11-4 lead and never looked back, winning 25-18.

Meeter led the Lobos with 14 kills, followed by Hadfield with 13 kills.  Rhoades finished the match with seven blocks, while junior libero Allison Buck had 16 digs.

In the second match of the day, New Mexico beat Florida Atlantic, 24-26, 25-15, 25-18, 25-17 to win the tourney. The Lobos took a 6-2 lead in the first set but the Owls caught up at the 19-19 mark.  FAU stayed close for the rest of the set, taking their only lead at 25-24 and taking the first set 26-24.  The Lobos bounced back to win the next three sets handily.

Meeter led the Lobos again in the offensive attack with 19 kills and a .486 attack percentage. She picked up another double-double with 14 digs.  Rhoades supplied 15 kills and four blocks, while Hadfield added 12 kills and nine blocks.

The Lobos begin Mountain West Conference action on Thursday, Sept. 23 against San Diego State.  Game time in California is set for 8 p.m. (MT).

-UNM-

University of Washington Huskies Volleyball Team Downs Robert Morris For Blue & Gold Title

University of Washington Huskies Volleyball Team Downs Robert Morris For Blue & Gold Title
Husky seniors Carlson and Perry earn All-Tournament honors while Hagglund nets MVP honor.

PITTSBURGH, Penn. - It was a youth movement for the ninth-ranked Husky volleyball team, as they closed out the Pittsburgh Blue & Gold with a sweep over Robert Morris, led by several first and second year Dawgs. Sophomore Kylin Muñoz tied for the team lead with nine kills while hitting .421, redshirt frosh Jenna Orlandini had a career-best 22 digs, and sophomore Kelcey Dunaway added a career-best eight kills, as the Huskies closed out their non-conference schedule with a 25-16, 25-13, 25-20 sweep of the Colonials.
Washington laid claim to its third tournament title of the season, as they finished their stint in Pittsburgh with three sweeps, topping Pittsburgh on Thursday, Eastern Illinois on Friday, and Robert Morris this afternoon. The Huskies will head into Pac-10 play next week with an 11-0 record, heading first to Oregon to face the Beavers and Ducks. This is the second-straight season that UW has gone through its non-conference slate without dropping a set.
Despite the youthful feel of today's match, it was the three Husky seniors that earned spots on the All-Tournament Team. Senior All-American Jenna Hagglund was named tournament MVP, and outside hitters Kindra Carlson and Becky Perry also were honored.
Today the Huskies had a strong team effort, posting their second-best kill total of the year at 48 despite no individual player reaching double-figures. Hagglund passed out a season-high 42 assists, and added three kills of her own on three attempts. The West Chester, Ohio native had eight kills on eight attempts over the past two matches. Sophomore Kelly Holford also had a career-high with 11 digs and added a pair of aces. Perry was level with Muñoz for the team lead with nine kills on 20 swings for a .350 attack mark. As a team, the Dawgs hit .376 compared to .136 for Robert Morris.

 

 

The first three Husky kills came courtesy of Dunaway in the middle, then freshman Gabbi Parker lined up back-to-back kills for a 6-4 UW lead. Bianca Rowland's first slam of the day sparked a 5-0 run, where she added a second kill, and Holford notched one of her aces as UW opened a 12-7 lead. Six different Huskies got into the act with kills throughout the middle part of the set, and three straight points courtesy of Muñoz, Rowland, and Carlson respectively made it 22-14 and forced the Colonials to call time. A dump from Hagglund brought up set point, and Perry finished things at 25-16 with her second kill. Orlandini had nine digs in the first set alone, and Washington cruised to a .485 attack percentage, helped by Dunaway's four kills on four attempts.
Once again Dunaway started the second set hot, with two kills on UW's first three points. The Bainbridge Island native then served up an ace for a 7-2 lead, forcing a Robert Morris timeout. Holford's second ace of the day extended the cushion to seven points at 11-4. Perry had consecutive kills a handful of points later, and another swing from Parker found its target and made it 17-10. Washington then ran off with the set on Holford's service. Hagglund finished a Perry set to win the side out, then Holford's float serve resulted in four-straight UW kills, two from Perry, and one each from Muñoz and Rowland. Once again Hagglund found Dunaway on set point for the 25-13 win. The Huskies hit a scintillating .567 in the set, with 18 kills and just one error on 30 attempts.
The third set proved to be more of a test, as UW gave up an early two-point lead and found itself down 15-12. Hagglund and Rowland blocked the next point down to break the run, and Orlandini then served the Huskies back into the driver's seat. Carlson earned the first kill, then UW threw up two-straight blocks, the first with Dunaway and Muñoz and the second featuring Dunaway and Hagglund. One more swing from Muñoz touched down and it was 18-15 Dawgs just like that and RMU called time. An ace from Muñoz made it 21-17, then Perry earned a solo block for the third-straight match, and Muñoz responded with yet another service winner for a 23-18 lead. Perry's ninth kill brought up match point, and Rowland cashed it in with a swing of her right arm, the final score 25-20.
The Huskies will begin Pac-10 play on the road, stopping first in Corvallis to face Oregon State next Friday, Sept. 24, at 7 p.m. The next night they'll be in Eugene for a showdown with the Ducks at 7 Pacific.

No. 7 USC Women's Volleyball Team Sweeps Sacramento State To Win The Fresno Invitational

No. 7 USC Women's Volleyball Team Sweeps Sacramento State To Win The Fresno Invitational

 

FRESNO, Calif. – Falyn Fonoimoana and Katie Fuller had 10 kills each Saturday as the No. 7 USC Women of Troy registered their fourth straight 3-0 sweep, defeating the Sacramento State Hornets (25-13, 25-16, 25-22).  USC won the Fresno State Invitational with a 3-0 record and has a 10-0 mark on the season.

Fonoimoana recorded her first collegiate double-double with 10 kills and 11 digs, hitting .381 (10-2-21) in the match.  Junior setter Kendall Bateman had 39 assists and seven digs while freshman Alexis Olgard added eight kills with six blocks for a .429 night (8-2-14).

“We were trying to build up our intensity this weekend, looking at different things,” said USC head coach Mick Haley.  “I think we did that in this final match as we get ready for our Pac-10 opener next week.  The team is coming along and I believe we have some good point-scoring potential.”

Eryn Kirby led the Hornets (7-8) with nine kills in the first-ever meeting in women’s volleyball between the two schools.

The Trojans opened the match with a 7-2 run.  Alex Jupiter’s kill pushed the lead to eight points at 17-9.  Fonoimoana’s ace capped three straight points to finish the set.  In the second set, USC broke an 8-8 tie with the 11-3 run to take the 2-0 lead in the match.  Sacramento State had the four-point lead late in the third at 19-15, but USC finished with a 10-3 flurry to get the sweep.  Lauren Williams tied it at 21-21, followed by a Hornet hitting error and block from Williams and Fuller.  Fonoimoana capped the sweep with her final kill.

USC travels to UC Irvine for the final non-conference match of the season on Tuesday (Sept. 21) before beginning Pac-10 Conference play on Friday (Sept. 24) against UCLA at the Galen Center.  Friday’s match begins at 7 p.m. and will be broadcast by FOX Sports Net.

USC    25-25-25
SS     13-16-22

Records: USC (10-0), Sacramento State (7-8)
Kills: Falyn Fonoimoana/Katie Fuller 10 (USC), Eryn Kirby (SS)

Team:   USC SS
1    .464    .000
2    .394    .075
3    .061    .061
Match   .298    .050

Western Michigan Volleyball Team Sweeps Northeastern

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Western Michigan Volleyball Team Sweeps Northeastern

 

SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. -- Junior middle blocker Ashley Turnage set career highs with 13 kills and eight blocks to lead Western Michigan volleyball past Northeastern, 3-0 (25-22, 25-20, 27-25), in the Seton Hall Invitational at Walsh Gymnasium.

Turnage's eight block assists is a career high, while her eight total blocks ties a career high, which led to a career-high 18 points. Turnage hit .385 for the Broncos, while her partner, sophomore middle blocker Jessica Brown, hit .400 with 12 kills and two blocks.

"Turnage and Jess did a good job in the middle and Sam did a good job of forcing the middle," head coach Colleen Munson said. "Turnage was able to run some things in front of the setter, which she is very good at, and their middles couldn't respond. Turnage also did a really good job of closing her block and making things difficult for them."

The Broncos (7-4) benefitted against the Huskies (8-5) with the eighth career double-double for junior setter Sam Viox with 33 assists, season-high-tying 12 digs, two aces and two blocks.

Senior outside hitter Allyson Doyle added a team-high 15 digs, five blocks, four kills and three assists. Doyle moved into seventh in school history with 287 block assists to pass Zakiya Pope and became the 12th player in school history to compile 300 total blocks (301). She also moved into 10th in school history in attack attempts with 2,893 to pass Joanne Bingham.

Freshman outside hitter Gillian Asque added eight kills and eight digs, while freshman outside hitter Ali Gossen had a career-high three total blocks. Freshman Lena Oliver added 12 digs for the Broncos.

The Broncos hit .181 with 39 kills, while Northeastern hit .130 with 40 kills. The Broncos had a season-high 12 total blocks and served four aces. The Huskies had two aces, but eight missed serves.

Northeastern was led by Jessica LaScola with 27 digs and Janelle Tucker with 14 kills, but she was held to .190 hitting, and 12 digs.

"They were really, really scrappy and a very tenacious defensive team," Munson said. "We started well, but then began playing their system, which slowed us down on our side of the net. We just weren't as effective as we needed to be."

A block by Turnage and Doyle, kill by Doyle and Gossen ace put the Broncos up by seven, 13-6, in the first set. A kill by Brown concluded the 8-2 run to put WMU up nine, 17-8. The Huskies began to fight back and closed within two, 24-22, before Brown ended the set with a kill, 25-22.

WMU hit .367 with 14 kills, six by Brown, and blocked four swings by the Huskies. NU hit .242 with 12 kills.

A kill by Turnage tied the score, 7-7, but Northeastern rallied with a 9-4 run to go up by five, 16-11. The Broncos responded with a 6-0 run to take their first lead, 17-16. Turnage accounted for half the points in the run with kills. The Huskies tied the score on the next point, but WMU went on an 8-3 run to take the set, 25-20, after a bad set by NU.

Each team had 13 kills, but WMU hit .211 to .135 hitting for Northeastern. Turnage had seven kills and three blocks in the set for WMU.

The Broncos surrendered the first three points of the set and allowed Northeastern to build a six-point lead, 17-11, before beginning to rally. A service error by the Huskies started an 11-2 run to put the Broncos in front, 22-19. Turnage accounted for all three points to break a tie, 19-19, with two kills and a block assist with Gossen. Another Turnage kill put WMU up 23-20, but Northeastern went on a 5-1 run to re-take the lead, 25-24. The Huskies missed the next serve to tie the set, followed by an Asque kill and NU attack error to end the match, 27-25.

The Huskies had 15 kills and 11 errors to hit .066, including four more WMU blocks. The Broncos hit .068 with 12 kills, led by Turnage with four.

"Overall, the girls seemed to be in control against a different style of offense that what we normally see." Munson said. "The kids were tested and found a way to battle back. We were down in the last two sets, but relied on each other and that's a testament to what we worked on in practice this week to succeed."

Western Michigan continues the tournament at 10 a.m. tomorrow against Seton Hall and 12:30 p.m. against UMBC.

Samford volleyball team Drops Two Matches To Open Rice Invitational II

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Samford volleyball team Drops Two Matches To Open Rice Invitational II
--- Bulldogs fall to Stephen F. Austin, Rice on first day of tournament play ---
 
Sept. 17, 2010
 
HOUSTON ---- The Samford volleyball team dropped both of its matches Friday on the opening day of the Rice Invitational II. The Bulldogs fell in the morning match against Stephen F. Austin, 3-1 (19-25, 23-25, 25-17, 19-25), and lost by a score of 3-1 (12-25, 25-23, 24-26, 25-27) to Rice in the evening feature match.
 
Katie Murphy led the Bulldogs against SFA with 11 kills and five block assists. Allie Bettinger and Elizabeth Neisler followed with nine kills each. Bettinger also added 12 digs, an assist, a solo block and a block assist while Neisler also had one block assist.
 
Lyndsey Holt posted seven kills and five digs along with a solo block and a block assist while Hillary Fountain and Casey Garvey posted 22 assists each. Fountain added a kill, a block assist and two aces while Garvey also had nine digs and two aces.
 
Alexis Bauer led her team in digs with 15 while adding one assist and Taylor Palmer and Rachel Gadberry posted five kills each. Palmer also had two block assists while Gadberry had one block assist and two digs.
 
Allison Gideon and Mary Caitlin Bottles each tallied 10 kills while Gideon also added 28 assists and was two digs away from a triple-double with eight. Madison Hanlan led her team with 14 digs followed by Monica Pannone with 11. Sabrina Burns added seven kills and posted 10 block assists along with a solo block.
 
Against Rice, Bettinger posted her third double-double of the season with 11 kills and 15 digs along with a block assist and a set assist. Lauren Hutchinson led the Bulldogs with 13 kills and a .476 hitting percentage in her first match back from an illness that kept her out of play for the last week. She also added three block assists.
 
Fountain tallied 43 assists to go along with seven kills, three aces, three digs and a block assist. Holt also added seven kills while posting four digs, two block assists and an ace. Murphy had eight kills and three digs to go along with four block assists. Neisler had six kills, three block assists and a dig while Samantha Bland added eight digs, two aces and a kill. Garvey posted nine digs, three assists and a kill.
 
Ashleigh McCord led the Owls with 15 kills followed by Jordan Meredith and Nancy Cole with 14 and 12, respectively. Meredith Schamun posted a double-double with 45 assists and 13 digs while Tracey Lam led her team with 24 digs.
 
The Bulldogs will play Arkansas State for their final match of the tournament Saturday at 1 p.m. A full recap and box score will be available on www.samfordsports.com. Fans can also follow the action via live stats through links at the Samford volleyball schedule page. 
Stephen F. Austin, 3, Samford 1
Samford grabbed the first two points of the first set on back-to-back Ladyjack errors, but SFA came back and put together a 9-4 run to take a three-point lead and force Samford to take a timeout. After the break, the Bulldogs fought to get within two points on a couple of kills by Bettinger, but SFA pushed the lead back out to four and Samford burned its second timeout. Samford could not get anything going, and SFA would go on to win set one, 25-19.
 
The Bulldogs opened the second set with a 6-1 run to take a quick lead. Garvey sparked the run with an ace and then a Ladyjack error and a kill by Holt had Samford gave Samford a 3-0 advantage early. A service error by Garvey gave SFA its first point of the set but Samford charged back with another 3-0 run to force the Ladyjacks to take a timeout. SFA came back with a 6-3 run to get within two points but Samford forged ahead and maintained a three-point lead.
 
With the Bulldogs leading 19-16, Samford called a timeout. However, SFA took advantage and came back with a 5-2 run to tie the score at 21. Samford called another timeout but would only score two more points as the Ladyjacks went on to win set two, 25-23.
 
SFA scored the first two points of the third set before Samford got on the board with a kill by Holt. The Ladyjacks then scored three straight before a kill by Palmer cut the lead to three. SFA held a 7-2 lead until Samford stormed back with a 5-0 run to tie the score at seven with kills by Fountain and Neisler, a block by Neisler and Gadberry and an ace by Fountain.
 
SFA called a timeout but Samford forged ahead with an 8-4 run to take a 15-12 lead. Garvey served for five consecutive points as Palmer and Murphy stole the lead back for the Bulldogs. The Ladyjacks called a timeout but would only score five more points in the set. Samford extended its lead to as much as eight and went on to win set three, 25-17.
 
The Bulldogs and Ladyjacks fought through six ties in set four before SFA took a 10-8 lead. Samford called a timeout and after two Ladyjack points, the Bulldogs posted four straight on a couple of SFA errors and kills by Bettinger and Neisler. SFA took a timeout and managed to maintain a three-point lead before Samford called a timeout with the Ladyjacks leading 19-16.
 
SFA knocked down a block out of the break but Samford responded with three straight points on a kill by Holt and a couple of Ladyjack errors to get within one point and force SFA to call its final timeout of the match. However, the Ladyjacks would come back with five straight points and go on to win the fourth and final set, 25-19.
 
Rice 3, Samford 1
 
Rice opened the first set with five straight points to jump out to an early lead. A kill by Murphy and an ace by Holt got the Bulldogs on the board and Samford went on a 5-3 run to get within two points. Rice would forge ahead and take a 16-9 lead, forcing Samford to call a timeout. However, Samford would only score three more points in the set as the Owls went on a 9-3 run to win set one, 25-12.
 
The Owls took a quick 2-0 lead in the second set but Samford fought back through eight tied scores to take a three-point lead. With the score tied at 12, Samford went on a 5-1 run with the help of kills by Fountain and Neisler and a few Rice errors and took a 16-13 lead which forced an Owl timeout. Rice came back and posted a 4-1 run to tie the score at 17. Samford then took a timeout.
 
The Bulldogs responded with a run of their own, grabbing three quick points on an Owl service error and two aces by Fountain. Rice then knocked down a kill but Samford forced another timeout after a kill by Hutchinson and a block by Hutchinson and Holt. The Owls scored three straight points out of the break but after another Bulldog timeout, Samford would go on to win the second set, 25-23, on a kill by Murphy.
 
Samford took a quick 7-3 lead in the third set with the help of kills by Hutchinson, Holt and Fountain. The Owls were forced to take an early timeout but the Bulldogs kept fighting and maintained their four-point lead. With Samford leading 17-13, Rice took another timeout and came back with a 9-5 run to take a one-point lead. Samford called a timeout and cut the lead to one and then a service ace by Bland tied the score at 24. However, Rice would get the 26-24 win on back-to-back Samford errors.
 
Neisler got the Bulldogs on the board first in the fourth set with a kill but Rice quickly answered back. Three straight kills by Hutchinson, Holt and Neisler gave the Bulldogs a 4-1 lead but the Owls came right back and tied the score. The score was tied four more times before Samford scored four consecutive points to take a 12-8 lead. Rice called a timeout and eventually fought back to tie the score at 18. The Bulldogs refused to relinquish the lead but the Owls stayed on their heels keeping within as much as one point before finally tying the score at 24. A Samford error gave Rice match-point at 25-24 and the Bulldogs called a timeout. Fountain held the Owls with a kill but a kill and a Samford error would give Rice the set four win, 27-25.
 
*** SAMFORD BULLDOGS ***
 

UCLA Women's Volleyball: Penn Is Not Mightier Than the Bruins in Sweep

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UCLA Women's Volleyball: Penn Is Not Mightier Than the Bruins in Sweep

IRVINE, Calif. - Senior Dicey McGraw had a match-high 13 kills in just two sets, while sophomore Mari Hole added eight kills in a pair of sets, as the 13th-ranked Bruins swept Penn on Friday at the ASICS Challenge at Crawford Court. Set scores were 25-22, 25-21, 25-11.
 
The Bruins win their seventh in a row to improve to 9-1, while the Quakers fall to 3-5. Hole hit .412 with only one error in 17 attacks. Freshman Kelly Reeves recorded seven kills and seven digs. The Bruins hit .317 for the match.
 
After the Quakers scored two of the first three points of the match, the Bruins came back with two in a row and seven of the next eight to take an 8-3 advantage. Reeves had a kill and an ace to give UCLA the lead at 3-2. Penn sided out to even it at three, but the Bruins responded with five in a row. Junior Katie Camp was involved in four of the five points, posting back-to-back kills, a triple block with McGraw and junior Lauren Van Orden and a combo roof with McGraw. The run concluded with a kill from Van Orden to make it a five-point lead.
 
The Quakers called timeout and came out of the break on fire with six of the next seven to tie the score at nine. Six sideouts later and tied at 12, the Bruins scored three straight on a kill and ace by Reeves and a Penn attack error to make it 15-12. The Quakers again called timeout and again came back, scoring the next four to go up 16-15 to force the Bruins into a timeout. Penn scored the next point out of the break to extend its lead to 17-15, but UCLA rallied with three in a row on a kill by Van Orden, an ace from sophomore Bojana Todorovic and a McGraw spike to go up 18-17.
 
Penn tied it again at 18 and 19, but the Bruins netted four in a row and kept the lead for the rest of the set. McGraw had a kill, which was followed by a Van Orden ace, a Penn attack error and a spike by Reeves. UCLA won the opener on its second set point after a kill by Kidder. McGraw paced the Bruins with five kills, while Kidder, Reeves and Van Orden had three apiece. The Bruins out-hit the Quakers .310 to .289.
 
Set two began with a trio of 3-0 runs. UCLA started it with back-to-back kills by McGraw and another from Todorovic. After Penn tied it at three, consecutive spikes by McGraw, Reeves and freshman Mariana Aquino put the Bruins back up by three at 6-3. The Quakers came back though with seven of the next 10 to take a 10-9 advantage. Penn’s lead grew to as many as three at 13-10 and 14-11.
 
But the Bruins stormed back with runs of 2-0 and 7-1 to go up 18-15. McGraw had a kill and a stuff block to get the Bruins to within one at 14-13. After a Penn sideout, UCLA scored five in a row on kills by McGraw and Hole, a combo block by Aquino and Reeves, a Penn attack error and another roof by Aquino and Reeves. The Quakers closed to within one at 18-17, but the Bruins scored three in a row on two kills by Reeves and one by Hole and never looked back. The set fittingly ended on a kill by McGraw, who had eight in the second, as the Bruins won 25-21. Hole and Reeves each had four kills in the second, while junior Sara Sage added three. The Bruins out-hit the Quakers .304 to .158.
 
UCLA never trailed in the third as it emptied the bench. Tied at four, the Bruins scored five straight on three kills by Hole, one from Aquino and a Penn attack error to go ahead 9-4. The Bruins led by five at 13-8 when they scored eight in a row to extend their advantage to 21-8. After a Penn service error, freshman Meg Norton had a kill and teamed up for a block with Aquino to make it 16-8. Following an ace by freshman Jenna Scilacci, Norton posted another kill to get the lead to double figures for the first time at 18-8.
 
The Bruins weren’t done though, as Scilacci notched back-to-back aces, while another Aquino/Norton block made the lead 13 at 21-8. UCLA went on to score four of the final five points of the match, clinching it on a Norton kill to win the third 25-11. Norton had six kills in the third, Hole posted four and Scilacci added three. The Bruins out-hit the Quakers .343 to .000.
 
The Bruins wrap up their non-conference schedule on Saturday against UC Irvine at the Bren Events Center at 7 p.m. Gametracker will be available at UCLABruins.com.
 
--- UCLABRUINS.COM ---
 

UNLV Rebels Volleyball Team: MATADORS EVADE REBELS IN WIN

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UNLV Rebels Volleyball Team: MATADORS EVADE REBELS IN WIN

UNLV returns to action Saturday with a pair of contests.

LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) – The UNLV Rebels (3-7) suffered a 3-0 setback to the Cal State Northridge Matadors (4-7) Friday night in the UNLV Classic hosted in the Cox Pavilion. Cal State Northridge claimed the match by set scores of 25-11, 25-17, 25-18.

UNLV was out-hit .091 to .389 in the match. They recorded 17 less kills (26-to-43) and committed 10 more errors (18-to-8) than its opponent. The Matadors hit no worse than .290 (second set) in the match and had two sets in the .400s with a .462 effort in the first and .424 in the third. UNLV, on the other hand, hit .054 in the first, .069 in the second and .182 in the final frame.

The Rebels were paced offensively by Candice Thomas and Sara Nehf, who had eight and seven kills, respectively. Thomas tallied a team-best .500 hitting efficiency, as she had only one error in 14 swings. Besides her offensive production, Nehf helped out defensively and contributed a team-high eight digs.

Amanda Alles and Kendra Glendenning tied for the team lead in assists with seven apiece.

Cal State Northridge’s offense was primarily run through Mahina Haina, who threw down a match-high 14 kills and hit at a .565 clip. Sam Orlandini set 21 of the Matadors’ 34 registered assists, while Cindy Ortiz was the top defender with 14 digs.

UNLV is back in action Saturday with a pair of matches. The Rebels take on the San Jose State Spartans at 12:00 pm and then close out the tournament with a 7:00 pm contest against the Xavier Musketeers.

Xavier knocked off San Jose State by a 3-0 margin in Friday’s first match of the Classic.

IPFW Mastodons Volleyball Team Falls in Four to Western Illinois

IPFW Mastodons Volleyball Team Falls in Four to Western Illinois

Macomb, IL - The IPFW Mastodons evened their record in conference play on Friday evening with a 3-1 loss to the Western Illinois Leathernecks by scores of 17-25, 25-20, 25-20, 25-18.

Maya Schlindwein had a team-best 14 kills, while Stephanie Lamberti and Haley Emenhiser each had nine in the losing effort. Tessa McGill had another big dig game, picking up 23 a match after setting a new school record with 47 against Ball State. Megan Steenhuysen had 10 digs to go along with a team-best 33 assists for the double-double effort.

The Mastodons had a blistering .412 attack percentage in the opening set, and trailed only briefly while using runs of 6-0 and 4-0 to run away with the opening set 25-17.

The Leathernecks turned the tables on the Mastodons in the second set, trailing only early in the set, and utilizing a string of points to lead 21-13. IPFW battled back to cut the deficit to four at 23-19, before the hosts scored two of the final three points of the set to send the match tied to the intermission between sets two and three.

IPFW opened the second set on a tear, jumping out to a quick 10-2 lead in the frame. The Mastodon lead was cut to five as late as 15-10 before the host Leathernecks kept chipping away at the lead, out-scoring IPFW 15-5 the rest of the way to take the third set 25-20.

The fourth, and eventual final, set saw the to teams battle back-and-forth, and were tied at 12-12 before the Leathernecks ran off five straight points to jump ahead 17-12. IPFW got to within three at 18-15, but a 7-3 run to end the set closed the door for the Mastodons.

Brooke Stittleburg led Western Illinois with 17 kills as Allison Gilbert had 11 and Katie Hosteng 10. Heather Smith dished out a match-high 41 assists, while picking up 21 digs. Hosteng also added a match-high eight blocks.

The Mastodons look to even their record on their current two-game road swing when the travel to Indianapolis, Indiana, to face off against the Jaguars of IUPUI with first serve slated for 7:00 PM.