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Bucknell Volleyball Stumbles 3-1 at Holy Cross
Oct. 23, 2009
WORCESTER, Mass. – Bucknell volleyball failed to get off the ground Friday night, falling to Holy Cross 3-1 (25-15, 29-17, 15-25, 25-23) in Worcester, Mass. Despite a team-high 20 kills and 13 digs from Kaitlin Segal (Pacific Palisades, Calif./Harvard-Westlake), the Bison (8-12, 4-4) were unable to claim their first three-game winning streak since 2006. Looking for a little payback from its 3-0 loss to Bucknell earlier this season, Holy Cross (4-19, 2-6) came out swinging. The Crusaders jumped out to a 10-3 lead behind some strong hitting. Megan Lynch recorded four kills before the Bison could even blink. Head coach Cindy Opalski was not happy with the way her team began play on the road. “We started the match tonight extremely sluggish and never regained our stride,” said Opalski. “There’s a skill to getting on the road and performing, and we didn’t get off the bus ready to play. To Holy Cross’ credit, they played a great match. They played with a lot of heart.” Bucknell worked to get Holy Cross’ advantage down to three points soon, however. Segal registered three kills in five points to set the score at 11-8. Holy Cross stayed in the set, however, and its hitting continued to dominate. The first set was over in a hurry at 25-16. Holy Cross’ attack percentage told the story in the early goings. The Crusaders finished the first set at .429 compared to .179 for the Bison. The second set looked like it was going to be a simple continuation of the first as Holy Cross again opened with a 10-3 lead. Bucknell refused to go away easily this time. Jackie Landes (Pacific Palisades, Calif./Wildwood School) earned a kill fro 18-11 to give the Bison the service opportunity. With Emily Sawanobori (Warren, N.J./Watchung Hills) behind the service line, Bucknell rattled off six straight points for 18-17. Lynch recorded yet another kill to keep her opponent from coming any closer, although the Bison managed to hover within striking distance over the next several points.
Bucknell went on another six-point run with Holy Cross sitting at set point. The Crusaders’ Kathleen Colpoys committed an attack error to give the Bison their first lead of the night at 25-24. Colpoys redeemed herself quickly, blocking the Bucknell attack on the next point and keeping the second set alive. Segal did her best to keep her team in it as well, posting a pair of kills in the final six points. In the end, it was not enough to avoid falling in a two-set hole with a 29-27 loss. Things finally started going Bucknell’s way in the third. Despite losing the tough second set, the Orange and Blue carried their momentum into the next frame, taking an early but narrow lead from the start. The Bison committed a service error to give the Crusaders a good look at 12-11, but they slammed the door in a hurry. Bucknell closed out the third by going on a 13-4 run. The set ended just as quickly as it started and the teams headed to a fourth set. Competition was ramped up again in what turned out to be the final frame. The two teams swapped momentum throughout play, as Holy Cross claimed the early advantage. A 5-1 Crusaders run forced the Bison to call a timeout at 13-7 and, although the stoppage did little to slow down the home team, the Bison continued to work. The effort paid off as they went from an eight-point deficit to tying the set at 20-20. That final hurdle proved to be the toughest to clear for the Bison. Lynch recorded her 23rd and final kill of the night to keep Bucknell from going ahead. Although Segal served an ace to get back within one at 23-22 and the Crusaders’ Chelsey O’Donnell served an error to keep the Bison within one at 24-23, it was not enough in the end. Holy Cross claimed its second Patriot League win of the season with a 25-23 fourth-set victory. Joining Segal in double-digit kills was Heidi Kamp (Eugene, Ore./Henry D. Sheldon) with 13. Allison Gittings (Dayton, Md./Glenelg) had a hand in many of those scores, putting up 42 assists on the night. Rachel Rodriguez (Sagamore Hills, Ohio/Walsh Jesuit) and Sawanobori each added 10 digs. Lynch was the only Crusader in double figures in kills, while O’Donnell squeaked out the match high in assists with 43. Bucknell will have little time to turn its fortunes as it takes on Army tomorrow evening at 4 p.m. in West Point, N.Y. Live stats and video for the match will be available at goARMYsports.com. |
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