Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell Volleyball Hosts Holy Cross, Senior Night Friday at Davis Gym
11/1/2012 8:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Nov. 1, 2012
| Webcast 
LEWISBURG, Pa. - Bucknell volleyball will look to go out with a bang as it hosts its final matches at Davis Gym for the 2012 campaign, starting with Holy Cross at 7 p.m. on Friday before welcoming Army at 5 p.m. on Saturday. Friday's action will be preceded by Senior Night with the Bison recognizing Kat Tauscher (Washington, D.C./National Cathedral School) and Kebah Edoho (Odenton, Md./Arundel) for their success in the Orange & Blue over the last four years. The contest with the Crusaders can also be seen on Bison Vision at BucknellBison.com.
BISON NOTEBOOK
- Bucknell (8-17, 2-8 PL) will bid farewell to its senior before Friday's match against Holy Cross. With four matches left in her career, Edoho has 388 kills and 208 total blocks while with the Orange & Blue. This season alone, she has set personal bests in kills (172), aces (8), digs (26) and blocks (97). Tauscher has the team high in both assists (476) and service aces (23) this season. She surpassed the 1,000-assist mark at the beginning of the year and enters the weekend with 1,434.
- Bucknell's blocking game continues to be a high point this fall. In Patriot League matches, the Bison rank second with 2.53 blocks per set. Karen Campbell (Chesapeake, Va./Cape Henry Collegiate) ranks second in blocks (1.23/set), while Edoho is fifth (1.15).
- Also ranking among the league's top 10 are Tauscher and Meghan Wentzel (San Anselmo, Calif./The Branson School) in assists. Tauscher is seventh (5.65/set) and Wentzel is ninth (4.42/set). Morgan Mientus (Chicago, Ill./Saint Ignatius College Prep) hangs on to her spot for 10th in digs (3.18/set), and Edoho is fourth in hitting percentage (.309). Claire Healy (Tiburon, Calif./Saint Ignatius College Prep) is eighth in kills with a 2.79 set average.
- Healy enters the weekend with 184 kills, more than any other Bison this season. Although Jessica Serrato (Millbrae, Calif./Saint Ignatius College Prep) and Edoho are close behind her with 175 and 172 kills, respectively, Healy is looking to become the first freshman to lead Bucknell in the stat since 1992. Katie Steele posted a team-best 168 that season. She eventually went on to become the first volleyball player to be inducted into the Bucknell Athletics Hall of Fame.
- The last Bison from any class to reach 200 kills in a single season was Heidi Kamp. Kamp finished with 221 in 2010.
- Campbell and Edoho continue their quest to join rare company as well, but their milestone will come on the defensive side. Campbell enters the weekend with 98 blocks this fall, while Edoho has 97. Both are trying to become the first Bison to 100 blocks in a single campaign since Jennie Smith finished the 2006 season with 106. Together, Campbell and Edoho are hoping to be the first set of Bison teammates to reach 100 blocks in the same year since Melissa Wharton (187), Steele (140) and Heather Rendle (100) in 1995. Wharton's 187 blocks that season still stands as a program record.
- Campbell's blocking has picked up the pace in recent matches. The freshman currently has a 1.05 set average for the year. In the last three matches, she comes in at 1.43 blocks per set after totaling eight against Lehigh, five against Lafayette and seven at Colgate last Thursday.
- Bucknell's success from its freshman class extends to the setting position as well. Wentzel has led the Bison in assists in each of the last five matches and is averaging 5.33 per set during that stretch.
- This weekend marking the final set of matches at Davis Gym until the 2013 season. During 2012 so far, Bucknell is 4-4 when playing on its home court. The Bison are just 2-9 on the road and 2-4 in neutral-site matches.
SCOUTING THE CRUSADERS
- Holy Cross comes to Lewisburg with a 2-24 overall record. Its 1-9 Patriot League record places it eighth in the conference standings, although that lone win came against Bucknell on Sept. 29. Since the Crusaders and Bison last met, Holy Cross has been swept by Army twice, Lafayette and Navy. They also lost to American in five sets. In non-conference play, the Crusaders most recently defeated Bryant 3-0.
- In Patriot League matches this fall, Hannah Grace Stokes ranks fifth in assists (6.97/set) and Elizabeth Watters is seventh in digs (3.65/set). As a team, the Crusaders are last in attack percentage, opponent attack percentage, kills, assists, blocks, service aces and digs.
- Megan Lynch continues to lead Holy Cross in kills with 224 this season. That is the lowest total of her career as she now holds the Crusaders' career kills record at 1,442. Stokes leads the team in assists with 438 (5.41/set) this fall.
- Holy Cross is still looking for its first road victory. The Crusaders are 0-9 away from Worcester, Mass., 0-6 on neutral courts and 2-9 at home.
- Bucknell has the series lead at 30-12 although it has lost the last two matches against Holy Cross. That marks the first time the Bison have dropped back-to-back decisions to the Crusaders since they lost the first eight matches in the series from 1986-91.
- When Bucknell and Holy Cross meet, the home team has won each of the last four matches.
- When the Bison and the Crusaders played in September, Holy Cross won 3-1 (25-23, 26-24, 21-25, 25-22). The win was the first of the season for the Crusaders as Heather Roberts led her team with 14 kills. Lynch was held to four kills. Stokes finished with seven service aces, which still stands as the most in a Patriot League match this season. On Bucknell's side, Healy finished with 14 kills and a career-best 18 digs. Edoho also had 12 kills.
SCOUTING THE BLACK KNIGHTS
- Army begins its weekend with a 17-7 overall record, and its 8-2 conference record places it second in the Patriot League standings, just one game behind Colgate. The Black Knights and the Raiders will meet on Friday night.
- Since Bucknell and Army last squared off on Sept. 28, the Black Knights have swept Holy Cross twice, Lehigh, Lafayette and Navy. The only conference matches they did not take in straight sets they lost, falling 3-1 to Colgate and 3-0 to American. Army's last seven wins have all come by a score of 3-0.
- Army leads the way in Patriot League play in opponent hitting percentage (.120), assists (13.03) and kills (14.00). It is second in hitting percentage (.209) and digs (17.94). With such team success, it's not surprising that several Black Knights also rank among the top 10 on the individual lists. Among them are Ariana Mankus, who is first in kills (3.62/set), and D.J. Phee, the digs leader (5.53/set). Mary Vaccaro is also second in league matches in assists (8.26/set) and aces (0.41/set).
- The location of the match doesn't seem to have much effect on Army's success this fall. The Black Knights are 10-4 at home, but 4-1 on the road and 3-2 at neutral sites. Army has won each of the last five matches at Davis Gym.
- Army leads Bucknell 27-13 in the all-time series. Bucknell has lost each of the last 11, giving it the longest losing streak in series history. Each of the last five matches has been decided in straight sets, making the Bison's last set victory Oct. 24, 2009.
- When Bucknell and Army met earlier this season, the Black Knights won in straight sets (25-18, 25-23, 25-18). Edoho led the Bison offensively with nine kills and a .529 attack percentage. Mankus, Zoe Kreitenberg and Margaux Jarka had 14, 13 and 12 kills, respectively, for Army. The teams were even in blocks with three apiece, but that total was the lowest of the Patriot League season for Bucknell.
LOOKING AHEAD
Bucknell has one more weekend left on its schedule and both of those matches are on the road. The Bison will travel to Annapolis, Md., to face Navy on Nov. 9, then make the short trip to Washington, D.C., to take on American on Nov. 10.
