Bucknell University
Lehigh
Bucknell Volleyball Defeats Lehigh 3-1
10/25/2008 8:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Oct. 25, 2008
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Sophomore Kaitlin Segal posted a double-double with 17 kills and 12 digs in the Bison's victory over Lehigh on Saturday. Bucknell's (10-15, 5-4) 3-1 win over the Mountain Hawks (8-15, 3-6) at Leeman-Turner Arena kept it in a third-place tie in the Patriot League standings heading into November.
The Bison wasted no time getting on the board in the first set of the night. Segal posted her first kill of the match to open the scoring, 1-0. Freshmen Kyleigh McAhren and Anne Ellenberger combined for a block a few points later and tied the contest at 2 apiece before Lehigh moved into the lead. A pair of kills by the Mountain Hawks' Maxie McCoy and a series of Bison errors started a run for the home team that eventually forced Bucknell to call a timeout down 11-4.
Sophomore Heidi Kamp reopened play with her first of eight kills on the night. Momentum did not officially change hands, however, until 14-8 in favor of Lehigh. With Segal serving, Lehigh committed five straight attack errors. McAhren and Ellenberger capped things off with their first kills of the match, and the Bison found themselves in front, 15-14. The Mountain Hawks continued to struggle with errors before Segal closed the set with a kill off an assist from junior Allison Gittings. The opening set concluded, 25-23.
The Mountain Hawk errors continued into the start of the second set as the home team led off with a fault at the service line. Bucknell took full advantage of Lehigh's inability to recover and ran away with the set, 25-13.
The Bison benefited from an even distribution of offensive production in the second. Kamp and Segal finished the set with three kills each, and McAhren and senior Shannon Pitsch each added one more. Bucknell also put together an effective service game, getting aces from Pitsch, sophomore Rachel Rodriguez and senior Sheena Czipri. Czipri's second ace of the set came at match point and gave Bucknell what looked like the beginnings of an easy match victory.
Lehigh was not about to give Bucknell the simple win, however, and came out aggressively. McAhren again opened scoring with a first-point kill, and freshman Katie Baumgarten followed up a few points later with one of her own, tying the set at 5 all. Lehigh took control from there, taking the lead and never giving it back. Bucknell finished the set with 18 kills, including five from Segal and three each from Kamp, Pitsch and McAhren. All of Baumgarten's four kills for the night came during the third. Despite the strong Orange and Blue attack, the Mountain Hawks proved to be too much. Lehigh closed with a block and earned their only set win, 25-22.
Bucknell continued to trail in the fourth set. A kill by Ellenberger tied the set at 4 apiece, but the Bison were unable to grab the lead until 13-12 following an attack error by Lehigh. That advantage was short-lived, however, as the Mountain Hawks came right back with a kill and a block to reclaim their spot in front. Segal posted her only ace of the match to give the Bison the 15-14 advantage, and her team never trailed again for the rest of the night. Senior Liz Hazuka followed her teammate's ace with her lone kill of the match, increasing the lead to two. Kamp and junior Lindsay Smith later teamed up for a block at 19-16. Appropriately, Segal closed the book on Lehigh with her ultimate kill, marking the final score at 25-19.
After dropping a tough contest to Lafayette on Friday, head coach Cindy Opalski was pleased with the way her team responded in their second match of the weekend.
“Fortunately we were able to turn things back around on the second leg of our Lehigh Valley trip,” said Opalski. “We feel really good with the way our kids were able to refocus and resurrect their game and get back on track.”
In addition to Segal's double-figure totals in kills and digs, the California native also finished the night with four block assists. With seven block assists, Kamp was just one shy of a tying her career high. McAhren put forth a well-rounded effort, posting five kills, four digs and two blocks. Freshman Emily Sawanobori led the Bison with 15 digs.
Lehigh had two players with double-digit kills in Angelika Kopacz with 14 and McCoy with 10. The Mountain Hawks also had two players with double-figure assists. Jessica Kudirka finished with 24, while Brittany Dickinson chipped in 13 more. Emma Melendez led both teams with 16 digs.
The Bison will close out October action on Friday, Oct. 31 when they travel to Hamilton, N.Y., for a 6 p.m. matchup with Colgate.
