Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell Volleyball Hits Road for Army, Holy Cross This Weekend
10/14/2010 8:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Oct. 14, 2010
LEWISBURG, Pa. – Bucknell volleyball will have to get past two of the league's top setters as it tries to maintain its four-match winning streak and take over sole possession of second place in the Patriot League standings this weekend. The Bison (6-11, 4-1) first face off against Army in West Point, N.Y., at 7 p.m. on Friday. The road trip continues to Worcester, Mass., for a 4 p.m. matchup on Saturday against Holy Cross.
Both Army and Holy Cross will be holding their Dig Pink events this weekend in support of breast cancer awareness. Fans are encouraged to wear pink to support the fight against breast cancer and to cheer on the Bison.
ABOUT THE BISON
- With a 3-2 win over Colgate last Friday, Bucknell extended its winning streak to four matches. That is the longest since the 2006 Bison posted streaks of six and five matches at various points in the season.
- Rachel Rodriguez (Sagamore Hills, Ohio/Walsh Jesuit) earned recognition for her outstanding play against the Raiders. The senior setter was named the Patriot League Player of the Week and the Susquehanna Valley Limousine Bison Athlete of the Week for the first time in her career after recording a career-high 43 assists, three kills and two blocks. Her 15 digs was also a season best, giving the captain her first double-double of the year. Rodriguez became the first Bucknellian to earn the Patriot League's top weekly award since Jenna Henderson on Sept. 10, 2007.
- Rodriguez was not the only Bison to finish with career numbers against Colgate. Katie Baumgarten (South Pasadena, Calif./South Pasadena) tallied 13 kills, and Heidi Kamp (Eugene, Ore./Henry D. Sheldon) added a match-high 22. Defensively, Leylin Marroquin (Lone Tree, Colo./Highlands Ranch) earned 22 digs for the best total of her young career.
- Among those joining Rodriguez with double-double performances against the Raiders were Baumgarten with 13 kills and 14 digs, and Kyleigh McAhren (Napa, Calif./Justin-Siena) with 15 kills and 10 digs.
- Three of Bucknell's six wins this season have come in five sets. The Bison are 3-0 in matches that go the distance.
- After five Patriot League matches, Kamp has moved to the top of the list in attack percentage. The senior captain is hitting a league-best .362 to along with 65 kills.
- McAhren is eyeing a bit of a career milestone. With 93 kills this season, the junior is looking for her third consecutive campaign with at least 100 kills. She finished with 215 as a freshman and 101 during her sophomore year.
- Baumgarten has already set a career high for kills in a single season. The junior outside hitter is enjoying her best season yet with 80 kills, surpassing her previous best single-season mark of 59 set as a freshman.
- Rodriguez and Kat Tauscher (Washington, D.C./National Cathedral) continue to make waves at the setter position. Rodriguez has 288 assists, followed by Tauscher with 197. The last time two Bison finished with at least 200 assists in the same season was in 2005. Jessica Le claimed 623, and Shannon Pitsch added 592 that year. Both Le and Pitsch rank among the top five in career and single-season assists at Bucknell.
- Bucknell trails Army in the all-time series 22-13. The Black Knights won both meetings last season by a score of 3-1. After hitting .043 in September at Davis Gym, the Bison improved their attack percentage to .222 in October behind 15 kills apiece from Kamp and Ragin Jackson (Cortlandt Manor, N.Y.).
- The Bison have struggled lately against the Black Knights. After winning two of three matches in 2006, Bucknell has lost each of its last six. - The last time the Bison defeated the Black Knights in West Point was in 2003. Army holds a 9-5 lead over Bucknell on its home court since the series began in 1989.
- Bucknell has won 27 matches opposite Holy Cross, while the Crusaders have just 10 victories. Holy Cross won each of the teams' first eight meetings before Bucknell went on a 27-2 run since 1992.
- The Bison and the Crusaders split meetings in 2009. Bucknell opened with a 3-0 victory in Davis Gym as it out-hit its opponent .257 to .019. Holy Cross then won 3-1 in the second meeting despite getting 13 kills from Kamp. The loss snapped Bucknell's stretch of 16 straight wins against Holy Cross.
ABOUT THE BLACK KNIGHTS
- Army heads into the weekend with a record of 11-10 overall and 4-1 in the Patriot League, tying them with the Bison for second in the league standings. The Black Knights' lone league loss came in a sweep at American two weeks ago.
- Army has three players with at least 100 kills this season, led by Ariana Mankus' 253 (3.37/set). Mankus also has more than 200 digs, but ranks second on the squad to Brittany Jensen's 233 (3.38/set). Karyn Powell leads in assists with 692 (9.11), while her 10.56 assists average in Patriot League play is first among all players. Megan Wilton (59, 0.86/set) and Amanda Rowell (58, 0.91/set) are neck-and-neck in total blocks.
- As a team, the Black Knights rank among the top two in the Patriot League standings in five different categories. Their .104 opponent attack percentage is first, while their attack percentage (.204), kills (13.69/set), assists (12.56/set) and service aces (2.31/set) are second.
- Army finished the 2009 campaign with a 26-6 record overall. The Black Knights' 12-2 league record also gave them the Patriot League regular-season and tournament titles for the first time. Before heading to the NCAA Tournament for a 3-1 loss to Penn in the first round, Army claimed a handful of individual awards. Mankus earned first team all-league honors in addition to being named the league's Player and Rookie of the Year. Recent graduate Maureen Bannon was also a first-team selection and was named Setter of the Year and the Tournament MVP. Amanda Rowell and Francine Vasquez claimed second team honors, and Alma Kovaci was the Coach of the Year.
ABOUT THE CRUSADERS
- Holy Cross will host Bucknell on Saturday after welcoming Colgate to its home gym on Friday night. Heading into play, the Crusaders are 10-14 overall and 2-3 in the Patriot League, tying them for fifth in the standings. Both the team's league victories this fall ended in straight sets over Lafayette and Navy.
- With 312 kills (3.59/set), Megan Lynch leads a group of four Crusaders with 100-plus kills on the season. Her 3.75 kills average in Patriot League play also ranks her third among her league foes. Chelsey O'Donnell can find her name among the Patriot League leaders as well, ranking second in assists (8.75/set) through five league matches. She also has 759 assists in all 24 matches this season. Holy Cross has a long list of players with more than 100 digs on the year. Leading the group of five is Angela Chisholm with 314 (3.61/set).
- Holy Cross finished the 2009 campaign with a 5-24 record overall. The Crusaders' 3-11 Patriot League tally placed them seventh at the season's end. Lynch was the team's lone all-league selection, earning a second-team nod.
LOOKING AHEAD
This weekend's matches conclude the first round of Patriot League play. The Bison will try to repeat their early success when they travel to Navy and American Oct. 22-23.
