Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell Volleyball to Battle Lehigh, Lafayette on the Road
11/3/2011 8:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Nov. 3, 2011
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LEWISBURG, Pa. – Just four matches remain in the regular season for Bucknell volleyball, and the Bison will have to do some major damage in the last of league play to extend their campaign into the postseason. Their first test will come on the road at Lehigh and Lafayette this weekend. Bucknell and the Mountain Hawks will square off at 7 p.m. on Friday, while the showdown with the Leopards will follow at 4 p.m. on Saturday. Live stats and video will be available online for both matches.
ABOUT THE BISON
- When Bucknell (6-13, 3-7 PL) was last scheduled to play, it had its match against Colgate delayed slightly due to snow. Action finally began after officials worked around the poor travel conditions, but the Bison still fell in straight sets at Davis Gym. It was the last match of the season on their home court, where Bucknell went 5-8 this season.
- Against the Raiders last Saturday, Katie Baumgarten (South Pasadena, Calif./South Pasadena) put together a well-rounded performance that Bison fans began to be familiar with last season. The senior finished with team highs in kills and digs. Her nine kills was a season high, while her eight digs was one shy of her top mark of the year. Jessica Serrato (Millbrae, Calif./St. Ignatius College Prep) tallied eight kills and a .438 hitting percentage.
- Bucknell out-blocked Colgate in the outing 6.0 to 4.0. Anne Ellenberger (Phoenix, Ariz./Horizon Honors) contributed five block assists.
- Ellenberger continues to lead the Patriot League in blocks. Through 10 matches, the senior is averaging 1.38 blocks. Kat Tauscher (Washington, D.C./National Cathedral School) is also in the top 10 in assists, ranking seventh (7.79/set), while Emily Sawanobori (Warren, N.J./Watchung Hills) is ninth in digs (3.14/set). As a team, Bucknell ranks second in blocks at 2.06 per set.
- Although she seldom leads the team in kills on a match-by-match basis, Kebah Edoho (Odenton, Md./Arundel) has evolved into one of Bucknell's most steady offensive threats. The junior enters the weekend tied for third on the team in kills with 112, or 1.60 per set. That is a big improvement over past seasons. She began her year with 82 total kills in her previous two years, good for an average of 0.74 kills.
- Serrato has also seen major improvement. The sophomore leads the Bison with 179 kills (2.67/set) this fall. As a freshman, she totaled just 13 kills (0.68/set).
- Bucknell has a tough order if it is going to extend its efforts into the postseason. The Bison must win their final four matches and get some help from other teams if it is to finish in the top four in the Patriot League standings and claim one of the remaining two berths. American and Army have already qualified for the tournament.
ABOUT THE MOUNTAIN HAWKS
- At 16-8 overall and 7-3 in the Patriot League, Lehigh is one of those teams vying for a final conference tournament spot. The Mountain Hawks have won seven of their last eight matches. Since last playing the Bison, they took a five-set victory off Lafayette, then swept Navy, American and Holy Cross in consecutive matches. Since losing 3-1 to Army, Lehigh has bounced back for a 3-1 win over Delaware State and a straight sets victory at Lafayette last weekend.
- Lehigh has two players averaging better than two kills per set in Angelika Kopacz (2.73 kills/set) and Paige Kruse (2.54/set). Jessica Kudirka has 829 assists on the year and ranks second in Patriot League action with better than 10 assists per set. Leading the way defensively are Amanda Clark with 100 total blocks (1.16/set) and Rachel Charles with 376 digs. Charles' 4.56 digs per set average in conference action ranks first.
- After a 3-0 win on Oct. 1, the Mountain Hawks lead in the all-time series with the Bison, 37-25. It was just Bucknell's third loss to Lehigh since 2002. Serrato posted a team-high seven kills, while Taylor Poole led the way for Lehigh with nine kills and three blocks. Kudirka also dished up 31 assists.
ABOUT THE LEOPARDS
- Lafayette enters the weekend with an 8-15 record overall and a 1-9 mark in the Patriot League. The Leopards' lone conference victory in October came against Navy, 3-1. It was Lafayette's only win in the last 13 matches as well.
- Kaitlynn Zoller and Camissa Beghou share the team high in kills with 174 apiece. Lafayette has also been splitting the setting duties. Sarah Frohnapfel leads the team overall with 421 assists (7.94/set), but Molly Belcher has been getting much of the opportunity in Patriot League play. Belcher has 271 assists on the year, but her 6.70 assist average is eighth in the conference. Defensively, Christy Mebust is second in the Patriot League standings in digs with 4.33 per set against league foes.
- A straight-sets win for Bucknell when it played Lafayette at the end of September extended its series lead to 34-20. Kyleigh McAhren (Napa, Calif./Justin-Siena) led all players in that match with 14 kills, while Tauscher contributed 31 assists and Ellenberger threw in six blocks. The Bison recorded an attack percentage of .202, compared to .084 for the Leopards.
LOOKING AHEAD
Bucknell's final round of regular-season action will also take place on the road. The Bison will head to Worcester, Mass., for a 7 p.m. match with Holy Cross on Nov. 11. They will then head to West Point, N.Y., for a 4 p.m. showing at Army on Nov. 12.
