Sept. 12, 2009

Hokies move to 8-0, sweep Yale
Tech wins American Tournament

WASHINGTON, D.C. – For the second consecutive match, the Virginia Tech volleyball squad saw victory over an undefeated team, sweeping Yale (25-21, 25-15, 26-24) in its second match of the American Tournament in Bender Arena on Saturday afternoon.

Tech (8-0, 0-0 ACC) brought a balanced attack to the court, as nine different Hokies recorded a kill in the affair. Junior Felicia Willoughby and freshman Jennifer Wiker both registered eight kills and two blocks to lead Tech. Sophomore Erin Leaser dished out 29 assists, and senior Jill Gergen earned 10 digs.

In the second match the Hokies volleyball squad earned its third regular season tournament title of the season on Saturday night, winning the American Tournament crown by knocking off American, 3-1 (21-25, 25-13, 25-14, 27-25), in Bender Arena.

No. 22 FSU Sweeps Middle Tenn.
No. 22 'Noles Beat FIU

Miami, Fla. -- The No. 22 Florida State volleyball team has swept Middle Tennessee State in straight sets (25-20, 25-14, 25-21) in the team's first game of the FIU/Miami Invitational.

Saturday afternoon's victory over the Blue Raiders (5-5) marks FSU's third-straight sweep of a regular-season opponent. The 'Noles also swept the Italian National Team their last time out in what was an exhibition match.

In the second match The No. 22 Florida State volleyball team won its second of two games at the FIU/Miami Invitational Saturday night with a four-set (24-26, 25-21, 25-17, 25-12) victory over host Florida International.

Georgia Tech Beats SEMO, 3-1
Volleyball Beats Ole Miss, 3-1, To Win Courtyard Classic

ATLANTA - Sophomore Bailey Hunter had 19 kills as the Georgia Tech Volleyball team (6-2) defeated Southeast Missouri State (3-5), 3-1 (26-24, 22-25, 25-13, 25-20) Saturday afternoon in the Courtyard Classic at O'Keefe Gym.

The 19 kills for Hunter tied her career-high which she set in last night's match against Clemson. For the second straight night and fourth time this season, freshman Monique Mead recorded a double-double with 12 kills and 14 digs, while seniors Chrissy DeMichelis (11) and Brittany Roderick (10) also had double-figure kills for the Yellow Jackets.

In the second match senior Brittany Roderick had eight kills, four digs and hit .300 en route to MVP honors as the Georgia Tech Volleyball team (7-2) beat Mississippi (6-4), 3-1 (23-25, 30-28, 25-18, 25-15) Saturday night to win the Courtyard Classic at O'Keefe Gym.

Boston College Defeats Northeastern 3-2, Holy Cross 3-0 To Sweep Another Weekend

WORCESTER, Mass. - The Boston College volleyball team opened its weekend play in Worcester, MA with a thrilling 3-2 win over local rival, Northeastern University. The Eagles moved to 6-1 on the season while the Huskies dropped to 4-4.

BC's opening two sets were practically complete opposites of one another with the Eagles coming out of the gate poorly in the first and firing from all cylinders in the second. Although the total kills in the sets were similar (10 in the first and 13 in the second) the two main points of focus were in errors and hitting percentage. A hitting percentage of .029 in the first and .571 in the second was a huge difference for the team and the nine errors in the opening frame was reduced to only one.

The Eagles fought hard but were edged in the third set 26-24 to give the Huskies a 2-1 cushion in sets for the match. Realizing that they could not falter any longer, Head Coach Andrea Leonard inspired her team to pick themselves up and put everything into the final two frames.

Clemson Volleyball Downs Ole Miss, 3-1, in Georgia Tech Courtyard Classic
Clemson Volleyball Defeats Southeast Missouri, 3-0, to Wrap Up Courtyard Classic

ATLANTA - The Clemson volleyball (6-2, 0-1 ACC) team rebounded from a first-set loss to defeat the Ole Miss Rebels (6-3), 3-1 (22-25, 28-26, 25-12, 25-19), in the second match of the Courtyard Classic.

Senior Lia Proctor led the Clemson attack with 19 kills, while freshman Natalie Patzin recorded a career-high 18 kills, including eight in the first set. Clemson held Mississippi to a .089 hitting mark for the match.

In the second match Clemson's volleyball team wrapped up action at the Georgia Tech Courtyard Classic, sweeping Southeast Missouri to finish 2-1 on the weekend. The Tigers (7-2) hit .325 for the match and held the Redhawks (3-6) to only a .047 mark.

Terps Take Out Tribe in Three Sets
Volleyball Loses at Georgetown, 3-2

WASHINGTON - The University of Maryland volleyball team employed a balanced offensive attack and solid back-row defense, led by freshman Sam Rosario's season-high 21 digs, to sweep the William & Mary Tribe, 3-0, Saturday afternoon at the Georgetown Classic.

Sophomore Lisa Scott and freshman Kara Bates paced Maryland with nine kills apiece, while three others finished with six or more, as the Terps won by scores of 25-22, 26-24 and 25-21. With the victory, the Terps improved to 6-3 on the season, matching last season's win total.

In the second match senior middle blocker Katie Usher led the Terps with 12 kills and five blocks in the final match of the Georgetown Classic Saturday evening, but the University of Maryland volleyball team lost to the host Hoyas of Georgetown, 3-2.

Hurricanes Volleyball Collects 3-0 Sweep of Albany

Coral Gables, Fla. - Sophomore Lane Carico supplied 10 kills and Katie Gallagher handed out 35 assists to help the University of Miami volleyball team power past the University of Albany, 3-0 (25-22, 25-21, 25-20), Saturday evening at the James L. Knight Sports Complex in Coral Gables, Fla. The match was the final one for UM in the Miami/FIU Invitational.

Playing the third consecutive 2008 NCAA Tournament participant in as many days, Miami (7-2) played solid volleyball on Saturday in order to earn the win. The Hurricanes hit a solid .256 clip (44-12-125) as a team and pulled together 11 total blocks.

Miami led 9-8 in the first set when an Albany (4-5) service error allowed sophomore Ali Becker to slam home a kill on the ensuing play to start a 4-1 run that stretched the UM advantage at 13-10. Following an Albany timeout, the Great Danes' Brooke Stanley collected a kill to bring her team within 14-13.

Cavaliers Defeat Cougars, 3-1   

LINCOLN, Neb. – The Virginia volleyball team closed out the Ameritas Players Challenge at the University of Nebraska on Saturday evening with a 3-1 (25-15, 29-27, 18-25, 25-17) win over Brigham Young University. The win improves the Cavaliers to 5-4 on the season, while BYU falls to 4-6.

Senior Lauren Dickson led the Cavaliers with her 22nd career double-double, knocking down a team-high 16 kills to go with 13 digs.

Sophomore Simone Asque also collected a double-double for the Cavaliers, landing 12 kills and digging 13 attacks. Freshman Rachel Gray distributed 35 assists and had a personal-best – and match-high – six blocks, while freshman Jessica O’Shoney contributed a five blocks.

George Mason Trumps Volleyball
Volleyball Outlasts Dartmouth for 3-2 Win

RALEIGH, N.C. – NC State dropped a 3-1 match to George Mason in its first game on the day at the Raleigh Crabtree Valley Marriott Classic on Saturday, Sept. 12. The loss moves the Wolfpack to 5-5 on the year, while the Patriots climb to 8-3.

Sarah Griggs led the Pack offense with nine kills, while Alex Smith, Margaret Salata and Isis Gardner each added seven. Kelly Wood secured a team-best 29 digs in the libero role, while Salata had three total blocks. Lindsay Benac scored the team’s lone service ace.

In the second match NC State volleyball ended the Raleigh Crabtree Valley Marriott Classic with a 3-2 win over Dartmouth on Saturday, Sept. 12 at Reynolds Coliseum. The victory moves the Wolfpack to 6-5 on the year, while the Big Green slides to 2-4.

Duke Smothers Loyola in Three Set Win
No. 1 Penn State Takes Down Duke to Win Duke Invitational

DURHAM, N.C. - Led by a 16-dig effort from freshman Nailah Waterfield and a 12-dig performance from libero Claire Smalzer, Duke stifled Loyola's attack en route to a 3-0 (25-11, 25-18, 25-20) win over the Greyhounds on day two of the Duke Invitational in Cameron Indoor Stadium.

Waterfield surpassed her previous career-high of eight digs midway through the second set, collecting 13 in the second frame alone. Smalzer, meanwhile, reached double figures in the category for the fourth straight game to help hold Loyola to a sub-.200 clip in every set.

In the second match Megan Hodge put down 19 kills without a single attack error to lead No. 1 Penn State to a 3-0 (25-21, 25-17, 25-15) win over Duke in the Duke Invitational championship match Saturday evening in front of a crowd of 3,822 in Cameron Indoor Stadium.

Carolina Falls To Marshall 3-0
Rams Defeat Heels 3-0

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - North Carolina lost to Marshall 3-0 dropping each set 25-21 to the Thundering Herd in game three of the Carolina Classic. Freshman Emily McGee posted nine kills to lead the Heels, who only hit .160 for the match.

The Thundering Herd notched 47 kills and a .287 hitting percentage winning their tenth match of the season. Carolina's winning streak ends at three games and is now 4-4 on the year. Marshall improves to 10-1 after their biggest win of the season.

In the second match North Carolina fell to Colorado State 3-0 in the final match of the 2009 Carolina Classic. The Tar Heels fall to 4-5 on the season while the Rams improve to 6-3 on the young season. Carolina was led by the offensive trio of Heather Brooks, Emily McGee and Ingrid Hanson-Tuntland. After dropping the first two sets to the Rams, Carolina has now lost the first two sets in four out of the last five games.

Wake Forest Volleyball Finishes The Bash At The `Boro 0-3

The Wake Forest volleyball team dropped a pair of matches on Saturday to finish The Bash at the `Boro with an 0-3 record. Sophomore Kadija Fornah finished off the weekend with her first career double-double against Coastal Carolina Saturday evening.

The Deacons (0-9) dropped the first match of the day 3-0 to Auburn (25-18, 25-19, 25-15) and then fell in the nightcap 3-1 to Coastal Carolina (25-17, 16-25, 25-19, 25-16).

Fornah led the Deacons in the first match against Auburn with nine kills and three blocks. She then recorded her first career double-double against the Chanticleers with 11 kills and 10 digs. She finished the weekend with a total 34 kills, 15 digs and eight blocks.