Tag: volleyball

By Cooper Sutton

Sports Editor

After a tough schedule to begin the year, the women’s volleyball team began Patriot League play with two home games last weekend. The women lost a match on Friday against American University 3-1 but won 3-2 on Saturday against Navy.

The Bison came into their match against American having already faced solid competition outside of the Patriot League. The team only posted a record of 2-10, but it grew more unified and competitive as a result.

This competitiveness was apparent as soon as the Orange and Blue took the court in their first league action of 2010. Facing a very tough American University team (12-2), the Bison came out firing on all cylinders.

The energy was apparent as the team jumped out to an early lead in the first set and had the set firmly in the grasp with a score of 23-19. But the Eagles showed their winning mentality, taking the next six points consecutively to win the set.

“We came out strong against a very tough American squad on Friday night.  Not only did we have a great game plan, but our overall execution was solid.  If we did a better job of closing out the first set, I thought we could have taken the match,” head coach Cindy Opalski said.

Heidi Kamp ’11 and Ragin Jackson ’13 both posted hitting percentages of over .300. As a team, the Bison did not hit well, averaging .113; American’s average was .211.

The team fared much better in the second match. The Navy Midshipmen took the Orange and Blue down to the wire, but the Bison finished the fifth and final set ahead 17-15.

The Bison narrowly out-hit their opponent .178 to .167. The team owes much of its success to Kamp, who had an impressive 21 kills and a hitting percentage of .459. The highest Midshipmen hitting percentage was .286.

Kamp was very happy with the team’s performance. “Saturday’s match found our Bucknell team in the most fluid cohesion I have yet to feel this season, and the victory certainly left an incredibly sweet taste in our mouths for the remainder of the weekend,” she said.

This week the Bison will return to the road to face Lafayette and Lehigh.

By Cooper Sutton

Contributing Writer

The women’s volleyball team played three matches at the Niagara/Canisius Invitational this past weekend, winning against Canisius but losing against Indiana and Niagara.

The Bison started the tournament poorly, losing in three straight sets to Niagara. Young players kept the Bison afloat, as Ragin Jackson ’13 and Morgan Mientus ’14 both posted hitting percentages of nearly .500 apiece.

The team struggled even more against Indiana. The Bison failed to score more than 18 points in any set and was out-hit .271 to .013. “The Indiana match was a tough loss, the energy was definitely not there, and we lost focus,” Mientus said. Indiana came into the tournament with a perfect 6-0 record.

The highlight of the tournament came against Canisius in a 3-1 victory. The Bison came out strong, taking the first set 25-22. After losing an extremely close second set, the team took off, winning the following two sets for its second victory. This turnout was the Bison’s “most solid match of the season,” Mientus said.

Even with a record of 2-7, the team still believes it can turn things around.

The most notable Bison feat of the tournament belonged to Jackson, who was named to the All-Tournament Team. “Getting named to the All-Tournament team was definitely due to my team having my back and pushing me to be my best, and all of us playing well,” Jackson said. She tallied 19 kills in the tournament, 14 of which came in the win against Canisius.

The team will need Jackson’s help again this weekend to perform well at the Columbia Classic, where they will play Columbia, Fordham and Fairleigh Dickinson.

By Rob Duffy

Managing Editor

The women’s volleyball team came from behind to win its first match of the season, defeating Providence in five sets in the final match of the Bison Open. Kyleigh McAhren ’12 had 18 kills and Rachel Rodriguez ’11 had 30 assists for the Bison, who snapped a 12-match losing streak dating back to last season.

“We have had a tough preseason schedule so far, and although our record might not show it, we have become a stronger team in just these past two weeks of tournaments and practices,” McAhren said.

After the Bison dropped the second and third sets and fell behind 13-4 in the fourth, a kill by McAhren sparked a rally. With three kills by Katie Baumgarten ’12, the Orange and Blue went on a 9-1 run to climb back within one.

After Providence widened its lead to 18-14, the Bison scored seven straight, including three kills by Rodriguez, to take a 21-18 lead. The Orange and Blue won the set 25-20.
Providence opened the fifth with a 9-5 lead, and once again the Orange and Blue had to fight to come from behind.

Down 13-9, the Bison forced four straight errors to even the score. After the two teams traded kills, Anne Ellenberger ’12 scored to give the Orange and Blue the lead for good. The Bison won the set 16-14.

The comeback followed a 25-21 loss in the second set and a 25-14 setback in the third set. In the first set, the Bison overcame an early deficit to win 25-22.

The Bison lost to Eastern Michigan 3-0 (25-19, 25-19, 25-18) and to Iona 3-1 (25-20, 23-25, 25-15, 25-23) in the previous two games of the tournament.

Heidi Kamp  ’11 was named to the All-Tournament Team for the second straight weekend.

“We learned how to play better together as the weekend went on,” McAhren said. “This weekend started out with a couple of losses, but we ended on a positive note, giving us the confidence we need to win at this weekend’s tournament in Niagara.”

The Bison, now 1-5, will take on Niagara, Canisius and Indiana this weekend in the Niagara/Canisius Invitational.

By Rob Duffy

Managing Editor

The volleyball team lost three matches in straight sets at the Trojan Invitational last weekend in Los Angeles, Calif. The Orange and Blue struggled to get any momentum going against quality competition.

Against Loyola Marymount on Saturday, each set started out close, but each time the Bison eventually fell behind and allowed the Lions to build commanding leads. Loyola Marymount beat the Orange and Blue 25-17 in the first set, 25-16 in the second, and 25-15 in the third. The Lions recorded a total of 44 kills compared to 20 for the Bison.

Earlier in the day, the Orange and Blue could not keep up with No. 10 USC, falling 25-7, 25-18, and 25-13. The Trojans jumped on the Bison from the very beginning, getting off to a 13-2 lead in the first set. The second set was closer as the Orange and Blue prevented the Trojans from going on any extended runs. The Bison battled back from a 20-14 deficit to a 21-18 gap, but USC closed out the set with four straight points. The Trojans continued this run into the third set, getting off to an 8-0 lead from which the Bison could not come back.

The Bison also failed to get off the ground in their season opener against Cal State Fullerton Friday, losing 25-16, 25-11, and 25-15. Fullerton opened up large early leads in the first two sets, but even when the Bison stayed close early in the third set, they allowed several large runs to prevent victory.

Low attack percentages plagued the Bison all weekend. Out of its nine sets, the team’s top percentage was .115, and the team played four sets with either a negative percentage or zero. The team’s opponents only recorded one set below .200.

Heidi Kamp ’11 was named to the All-Tournament Team.

The Bison will try to turn things around in the Bucknell Invitational this weekend. The team will face Eastern Michigan at 7:30 p.m. tonight before taking on Iona at 12 p.m. and Providence at 5 p.m. Saturday. The Orange and Blue hope that home-court advantage will help them to their first win of the season.