Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell Volleyball Begins Patriot League Play at American, Navy
9/22/2011 8:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Sept. 22, 2011
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LEWISBURG, Pa. - Friday marks the first day of fall and the first day of Patriot League action as Bucknell volleyball opens its conference schedule at American and Navy this weekend. The Bison (3-6) will make the trip to Washington, D.C., to take on the defending Patriot League champion Eagles at 7 p.m. on Friday with live video available at aueagles.tv. They will then look to make it three consecutive wins against the Midshipmen at 4 p.m. at Annapolis, Md., on Saturday. Live stats on GameTracker for the matchup with Navy can be found at BucknellBison.com.
Fans planning on making the trip to Navy should be aware of regulations for gaining access to The Yard. Visit Navy's Game Day Guide at NavySports.com for more information.
ABOUT THE BISON
- Bucknell went 1-2 in its last early-season tournament of the year. The win against Coppin State was a big one as it gave Cindy Opalski her 300th victory as head coach of the Bison. Opalski will be recognized for the milestone prior to Bucknell's match against Lafayette on Sept. 30 at Davis Gym.
- Kat Tauscher (Washington, D.C./National Cathedral School) was named to the Bucknell Invitational All-Tournament Team after putting up 89 assists in three matches. It was the second consecutive weekend that the junior was named to an all-tournament squad. Tauscher was also recognized at the conclusion of the Central Connecticut State Blue Devil Invitational.
- Bucknell nearly pulled off the comeback of the season against Stony Brook. The Seawolves took a 2-0 set lead before the Bison pushed it to five sets. Although the Orange and Blue couldn't quite close things out, Hannah Young (McConnellsburg, Pa./Broadfording Christian Academy (Md.)) set a career high with 10 kills and Jessica Serrato (Millbrae, Calif./St. Ignatius College Prep) did the same with 19 digs. Serrato also added 12 kills.
- Young's 10 kills was a career best in a major way. The sophomore's previous career high had been two, set against Lafayette last November.
- Serrato has recorded double-digit digs in six of nine matches this season. With that effort, she now ranks third on the team in total digs (63) as well as first in kills (99).
- Morgan Markarian (Los Angeles, Calif./Marymount) took some time to get started, but the freshman has stepped up defensively the last couple of weeks. After leading the team with 45 digs at the Blue Devil Invitational, she repeated the feat with a squad-best 38 digs at last weekend's Bucknell Invitational. She now ranks second overall among Bison behind Leylin Marroquin (Lone Tree, Colo./Highlands Ranch), who has 101 digs.
- Through nine matches, Tauscher has amassed 304 assists. That nearly doubles her career total, as she entered the season with 315 assists through her first two campaigns. Morgan Mientus (Chicago, Ill./St. Ignatius College Prep) is hoping to have similar success. The sophomore totaled 59 kills last year and is already up to 69 this fall. She has equaled her aces total with seven each of the last two years, and is all but guaranteed to surpass her blocks total as well.
- The Bison went 8-6 in Patriot League play last season, finishing fourth in the standings. Among those returning in 2011, Katie Baumgarten (South Pasadena, Calif./South Pasadena), Tauscher and Marroquin led the team in kills, assists and digs, respectively.
- Bucknell is 1-29 all-time against American. The Bison's lone win came in five sets in 1996. Last season, Bucknell played its closest match when American came to Davis Gym. The Eagles pulled out the 3-1 victory after the Bison won the third set 32-30.
- Bucknell hopes to stay above .500 in the all-time series with Navy. Since the teams' first meeting in 1981, the Bison are 20-19. They have also won five of the last six and each of the last two matches against the Mids. Bucknell won 3-2 and 3-1 over Navy in the two matches last fall. The four-set bout in Annapolis ended with Kristen Titley (Coral Gables, Fla./Palmer Trinity School) and Baumgarten having recorded career highs in kills with 19 and 15, respectively. Titley also had a personal-best 14 digs in that contest.
ABOUT THE EAGLES
- American opens Patriot League play with a 6-9 record. The Eagles are 2-6 in their last eight matches, and 0-5 at home this fall. They have faced some tough competition in their non-league slate, including Oregon, which was ranked 15th in the latest RPI.
- American was selected first in the 2011 Patriot League Preseason Poll with the maximum number of possible points. After winning their ninth league championship out of a possible 10 since joining the Patriot League in 2001, the Eagles claimed 98 points and all 14 first-place votes.
- The Eagles boast a young squad this season - 12 of their 14 players are freshmen or sophomores - so it is no surprise that underclassmen are leading the team in several categories. Rookie Sara Rishell leads the Eagles with 171 kills (3.29/set) and 46 total blocks (0.88/set). Although senior Alexandra Hammer is tops in assists average with 5.85 per set, freshman Monika Smidova leads in total assists with 278 (5.67/set). Smidova is also the top Eagle in aces (19, 0.39/set) and digs (136, 2.78/set).
- American closed out the 2010 season with a 29-3 record overall and a perfect 14-0 mark in the Patriot League. They swept the competition at the league tournament, defeating both Bucknell and Colgate in straight sets, to earn the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Eagles fell 3-2 to UCLA in their final match of the year.
- Magdalena Tekiel, Cassandra Ricketts, Angelina Waterman and Bianca Richardson were each named to All-Patriot League teams last fall. Tekiel was also the league's Player of the Year, Waterman the tournament's MVP and Barry Goldberg the Coach of the Year. None of the four players returns this season.
ABOUT THE MIDSHIPMEN
- Navy begins its Patriot League schedule with a 5-10 record. Before hosting the Bison, the Mids will welcome Colgate on Friday night.
- Navy began the season 0-7 but have gone 5-3 since then. Included in that streak was a 3-1 win over Holy Cross at the Harvard Invitational on Sept. 17.
- After going 7-23 overall and 1-13 in the Patriot League last year, the Mids are looking to first-year head coach Larry Bock to turn the tides. This fall, Navy is led offensively by junior Carolyn Ewert's 158 kills (3.36/set). Senior Maida Kalic' is second on the squad in both kills (100, 1.92/set) and blocks (27, 0.52/set). Sophomore Erin Fortner directs the offense with 359 assists (8.59/set). Four different Mids have already surpassed the 100-dig mark, including Holly Berger with 212 (3.93/set).
LOOKING AHEAD
Bucknell will play its next two matches back in the friendly confines of Davis Gym with Lafayette at 7 p.m. on Sept. 30 and Lehigh at 5 p.m. on Oct. 1. The matchup with Lafayette will stream live on Bison Vision, and Doug Birdsong will have the call. Live stats on GameTracker will be available at BucknellBison.com.
