Oct. 3, 2009

Box Score

ANNAPOLIS, Md. - Bucknell volleyball bounced back from being swept a night ago to complete a sweep of its own, defeating Navy 3-0 (25-21, 25-20, 25-21) at the Wesley A. brown Field House Saturday afternoon. Heidi Kamp (Eugene, Ore./Henry D. Sheldon) led the Bison offensively and defensively, earning seven kills and six blocks on the day.

Bucknell (6-10, 2-2) found a way to rack up the points at the big moments throughout the match. In both the first and second sets, the Bison found themselves tied at 20 with the Midshipmen (5-13, 1-3). With the contest o the line, the Bison battled through to take the final five points for the set wins. The third was a bit more closely contested at the end, but Bucknell had used its earlier momentum to give it some room to work with in the middle of the set to keep Navy at bay and take its second league win of the year.

After a tough 3-1 loss to Colgate on Friday night, Navy was probably looking for a solid start to its Saturday. Meghan Carpenter opened the afternoon with back-to-back kills, but that did not discourage Bucknell who remained aggressive despite the early deficit.

No one was able to create more than a two-point lead until match point. Bucknell got six kills from five players and totaled five aces from four, showing the difficulty for any one player to get into a steady rhythm and make a run.

Despite finishing the first set ahead in kills 16-6. Navy could not get the stop when it mattered most. Navy committed a service error to put the serve back with Bucknell at 21-21. The Bison did not waste their opportunity either, benefitting from a Mids ball handling error, two service aces from Kaitlin Segal (Pacific Palisades, Calif./Harvard Westlake) and a block assist by Jackie Landes (Pacific Palisades, Calif./Wildwood School) and Ragin Jackson (Cortlandt Manor, N.Y./Hendrick Hudson) to close out the first 25-21.

Set number two started in much the same way as the first, but before long Navy had snuck out to a four-point advantage at 14-10. Kyleigh McAhren (Napa, Calif./Justin-Siena) go the control back for the Bison with a kill, and Emily Sawanobori (Warren, N.J./Watchung Hills) followed by serving back-to-back aces to bring her team within one.

With the teams again trading points, the Bison finally took a lead back on an Anne Ellenberger (Phoenix, Ariz./Horizon Honors) kill at 19-18. Landes and Kamp helped Bucknell to build onto that by combining for a block and two kills. In the end, Bucknell had grabbed a two-set advantage with a 25-20 win.

The third got off to a bit of a rocky start for the Bison as they committed a couple of errors and the Mids cashed in on a few attacks at the net. A Navy service error eventually gave Buckenll the look it needed, however. Rachel Rodriguez (Sagamore Hills, Ohio/Walsh Jesuit) entered the game to serve and led the Bison to six straight points, taking her team from trailing 4-3 to a 9-4 advantage.

Bucknell held on to its lead through the rest of the match, even stretching it to seven points after a Jackson kill for 19-12. With the breathing room it had created for itself, Bucknell cruised to the finish line despite a late-match defensive push from Navy. After being blocked twice in the final six points, Bucknell got its revenge when Ellenberger and Jackson got match point on a block assist of their own. In the end, it was 25-21 in favor of the Bison.

Although Navy had the final edge in team kills, 36-30, Bucknell out-blocked and out-served its opponent. Bucknell finished with 11 team blocks compared to seven for Navy. The Bison also served nine aces, while the Mids earned three.

Allison Gittings (Dayton, Md./Glenelg) again led the team in assists with 26, while Sawanobori had a team-best 10 digs. Segal and Jackson joined Kamp at the top of the kills list for the Bison, finishing with six and five, respectively. Jackson also had five blocks.

Navy's Carpenter led all players with 12 kills. Jenny Rudewicz chipped in 28 assists and 10 digs.

Bucknell will be back on the court on Friday, Oct. 9 to take on Colgate. The match in Hamilton, N.Y., is slated for a 7 p.m. start.

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