Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell University
Army
Bucknell Volleyball Battles but Comes Up Short at Army, 3-1
10/24/2009 8:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Oct. 24, 2009
WEST POINT, N.Y. – Bucknell volleyball threw everything it had at Army, but career performances from several Bison were not enough to avoid the 3-1 loss (25-22, 25-23, 19-25, 30-28) in West Point, N.Y., on Saturday night. Heidi Kamp (Eugene, Ore./Henry D. Sheldon) and Ragin Jackson (Cortlandt Manor, N.Y./Hendrick Hudson) each had a career-high 15 kills for Bucknell, while Kamp added a career-best nine total blocks. Four other Bison also broke personal records in the four-set match.
Although the score did not go in their favor, the Bison (8-13, 4-5) front line had an extremely successful outing against the first-place Black Knights (21-3, 9-0). On top of her personal-best 15 kills, Jackson hit .545, the highest mark of the match.
Kamp's 15 kills tied a career high for the junior. More impressively, however, she tallied nine total blocks, including eight block assists. Kamp now has 194 career block assists, moving her into fifth all-time at Bucknell.
Joining Kamp on the list of defensive successes was a group of four Bison with double-digit digs. Kaitlin Segal (Pacific Palisades, Calif./Harvard-Westlake) led all players with 22. Rachel Rodriguez (Sagamore Hills, Ohio/Walsh Jesuit) finished with 17 and Lindsay Regruto (Atlanta, Ga./Marist School) had 10, giving all three career-best marks. Emily Sawanobori (Warren, N.J./Watchung Hills) also had 16 digs on the night.
Although not entirely pleased with the match's outcome, head coach Cindy Opalski was happy with her team's performance and effort.
“It was probably the best match of the season for us,” said Opalski. “We did a really great job. I think our kids deserved to win. We really played well as a team, and defensively it was the best effort of the season as well.”
That defensive effort started quickly as the Bison earned the first point of the match on a block assist by Jackson and Anne Ellenberger (Phoenix, Ariz./Horizon Honors). Bucknell's blocking game helped to keep it in the lead for the first part of the opening set. As the Black Knights' Ariana Mankus got started, however, Army began to take back a bit of control. Mankus gave Army a brief lead at 11-10, but Bucknell pulled back in front and worked its way to a four-point advantage at 19-15.
Looking at a potential first-set loss, Army snapped into action. It closed out the first with an 11-3 run. Bucknell's points during that stretch came on a pair of service errors by the Black Knights and a kill by Jackie Landes (Pacific Palisades, Calif./Wildwood School).
Landes' kill was one of 10 on the night for the freshman, tying her career high set against Lafayette. The middle hitter also blocked a career-high four attacks against the Black Knights.
The second set was closely contested as well. Neither team could get more than a three-point lead, and much of the set was spent with the teams trading points. Bucknell took an 11-8 lead off an ace by Segal, but Army came back within one point with a kill and an ace by Rachel Dunn. Jackson and Kamp then traded kills with Francine Vasquez. The back-and-forth play continued right up until the end when Mankus put up back-to-back kills for the second-set win.
The third frame was the most lopsided of the night and it fell in favor of the Bison. It was not until half way through the set that Bucknell started to give itself a little breathing room. The Bison had been trying to expand their lead early in the action, but Fabiola Castro helped to keep it close at 12-10. Bucknell then strung together three straight points with the help of Landes and Kamp to give it the largest advantage at 15-10. Landes and Kamp had posted back-to-back kills then teamed up for a block assist.
Army called a timeout at that point and soon gained back those scores, but Bucknell was just too strong at the net. The Orange and Blue claimed their final nine points on kills to force a fourth set for the second straight night.
The third ended with Bucknell having a commanding advantage in attack percentage. The Bison hit. .462 in the set, compared to .286 for the Black Knights.
Bucknell took a quick 2-0 lead in the fourth set following a kill by Landes and a block assist by the freshman and Kamp. Army did not panic, however, and recovered soon after. The home team's advantage was eventually marked at 11-7 and that point spread held relatively steady for some time.
At 20-15, it looked as if Army were on its way to a clean victory. Bucknell had other thoughts, as it went on a 9-4 run. A kill by Jackson tied the set at 24. With both teams looking for set point, Bucknell committed a costly service error. What could have been the beginning of the end for the Bison turned into a series of miscues on both sides. That service mistake was followed by errors on six of the next seven points played. Army tied the set at 28 with its own hiccup from the service line, but it was also the first squad to recover. Consecutive kills by Dunn and Mankus shut out the hope of a fifth set, 30-28.
Not wanting to be left out on a night of outstanding performances, Allison Gittings (Dayton, Md./Glenelg) put up 41 assists. The total was one shy of her own career high, which she set last night at Holy Cross.
Mankus led both teams in kills, finishing with 20. Vasquez and Castro tallied 16 and 15 kills, respectively. Maureen Bannon, who leads the Patriot League in assists, tied her teammate Malissa Gallini with 24 assists.
Bucknell will be back in action on Friday, Oct. 30. The Bison will host Colgate on Pack the House Night at 7 p.m. in Davis Gym. Live stats on GameTracker will be available at BucknellBison.com.
