Oct. 16, 2008
LEWISBURG, Pa. - After a tough trip to California, the Bucknell volleyball team (8-13, 3-2) returns to the comforts of Davis Gym for a pair of Patriot League matches. The Bison will host American and Navy for the second round of league matchups. The Eagles make the trip to Lewisburg for a 7 p.m. contest on Friday, Oct. 17. The match, which will be available live on Bison Vision and GameTracker, is also "Think Pink" Night. Fans are encouraged to wear pink to support the fight against breast cancer.
Bucknell will go up against the Midshipmen the following day at 5 p.m. Live stats on GameTracker for the second showdown of the weekend will also be available on BucknellBison.com.
BISON VOLLEYBALL NOTEBOOK
About the Opponents
American, which is 13-6 overall and 5-0 in the Patriot League, has continued its strong play since it last met the Bison on Sept. 27 and is on an eight-game winning streak. Senior outside hitter Rubena Sukaj was named the Patriot League/Baden Player of the Week on Monday for the fourth time this season. Freshman teammate Rebecca Heath was also selected as the league's Rookie of the Week for the fifth consecutive week.
Last week, the Eagles were pushed to five sets on their home court in matches against Navy and New Jersey Institute of Technology, but they were able to pull out wins on both occasions. In the showdown with Navy, the Midshipmen ran out to a one-set lead, but American came back in the second, barely winning 28-26. The Eagles took the third set easily by a score of 25-14 before closing with a 15-11 win in the fifth. Against NJIT, American took the first set easily 25-11 but dropped the second and fourth. They then squeaked by, 15-11, in the deciding fifth set. Most recently, the Eagles defeated the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, 3-0. Sukaj and Heath combined for 29 kills in the match on Wednesday night.
When Bucknell and American met earlier in the season, the Eagles came away with a clean 3-0 victory. Sophomore Heidi Kamp led the Bison with nine kills on .500 hitting (9-2-14), followed by Segal with seven kills. Senior Shannon Pitsch's 20 assists was also a Bucknell high, as was senior Sheena Czipri's seven digs. Three American players also hit .500 or better, led by Sukaj's 12 kills (.706 hitting percentage), Heath's 10 (.562) and Claire Recht's nine (.500). With its most recent win, American is now 22-1 all time against the Bison.
Navy also enters the weekend 13-6 overall and 2-3 in the Patriot League. The Midshipmen will make a stop at Colgate on Friday prior to taking on the Bison on Saturday. The Mids had a four-game winning streak interrupted last weekend by the loss to American. After beginning the run with a 3-2 victory over Hampton, they defeated Lehigh and Lafayette by scores of 3-1. Navy then closed with a 3-0 win over Saint Francis (Pa.).
Senior Alexa Gibbs is the player to watch for Navy having opened October by earning a Patriot League/Baden Player of the Week selection. The middle blocker has accumulated more than 200 kills in 2008 and more than 700 in her career.
Bucknell and Navy last met on Sept. 26 in both schools' Patriot League opener. Bucknell walked away with the 3-0 win behind a match-high 16 kills from Segal and 33 assists from Pitsch. Segal also had eight digs on the match, which was bested only by Czipri and Navy's Holly Berger who each had nine. Gibbs led the Midshipmen with 14 kills, followed by 10 kills from Jessie Sims, another former Patriot League/Baden Player of the Week. Navy leads the all-time series with Bucknell, 18-16.
Last Time Out
In its only Patriot League match of the week, Bucknell took on Colgate in Davis Gym last Friday. The home team came away with the 3-0 victory, raising its league record above .500 and earning the third-best record in the league through the first round of play.
After sweeping back-to-back matches against Holy Cross and Colgate, the Bison got a taste of their own medicine at Cal State Fullerton and Cal State Bakersfield last weekend. Bucknell fell 3-0 to a tough CSU Fullerton team when it struggled to get its offense in full swing. The Orange and Blue suffered the same fate the next night at CSU Bakersfield despite an all-around improvement in play.
Segal and Kamp have combined to form a formidable duo at net. Against Colgate, they each totaled 13 kills marking just the fourth time this season that two or more Bison have finished in double-figures. The two players also finished among the team's top three in kills in both matches in California.
The Bison benefited greatly from a strong blocking game against Colgate. Six players combined for a total of 16 block assists in the match. Segal and freshman Kyleigh McAhren led the way with four each, while freshman Anne Ellenberger added three more. Senior Liz Hazuka tied her career high of two blocks, and Kamp also had two on the night. Pitsch rounded out the total with one.
Bucknell is putting Pitsch back on the record watch. With 126 service aces, the senior is two away from breaking into the top five for career aces by a Bison. Pitsch became the top setter for Bucknell when she broke the school's career assists record against La Salle on Sept. 20. As of Oct. 15, she has 3,286 assists as a Bison.
Think Pink
The Orange and Blue are turning pink for Friday's match versus American. October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and Bucknell volleyball is joining universities across the country in the fight against breast cancer. The Bison will host "Think Pink" Night at Davis Gym, and all fans are encouraged to wear pink. Those in attendance will receive pink ribbons to further show their support and will be eligible to win one of two volleyballs being raffled for the cause.
Looking Ahead
Bucknell's run of home matches will be short-lived as the Bison hit the road again to face Lafayette and Lehigh. The contest with Lafayette will begin at 7 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 24 in Easton, Pa. Bucknell will then travel to Bethlehem, Pa., for a 4 p.m. matchup with Lehigh on Saturday, Oct. 25.
