Volleyball: WVU Splits Matches
September 04, 2010 07:03 PM | General
September 4, 2010
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| Serinna Russo |
FAIRFAX, Va. – Junior transfer Serinna Russo posted 17 kills and 31 digs today, as the West Virginia University volleyball team split matches in the last day of competition at the Patriot Invitational hosted by George Mason.
“After playing George Mason this afternoon, we knew we needed to come back strong against Army and that it would be a good test for us as a team,” first-year coach Jill Kramer says. “Army is relentless on defense, so I was happy to see that we responded the way we did. With the quick turnaround, this is a great way to go into this week’s practice and prepare for the Wake Forest tournament.”
The Mountaineers (5-2) defeated Army (2-5) in a 3-0 (25-21, 29-27, 25-14) match and fell to George Mason (3-2) in a 3-0 (21-25, 22-25, 26-24) match.
Senior Abby Norman and junior Michelle Kopecky rallied the Mountaineers in set one with five kills each. Down 7-9 at the beginning of the set, Norman landed a kill, followed by two from Kopecky to give the Mountaineers the advantage. WVU never looked back in the set as Kopecky capitalized on a kill.
Tied at 14 in set two, senior Lauren Evans posted a kill, followed by a block with freshman setter Lisa Riedel to send the Mountaineers on an 8-0 run. The Black Knights then went on a run of their own and came back to tie the set at 24. With a win by two rule in place, the two teams battled until WVU finished on a kill.
The Mountaineers carried the momentum from set two into the third set, as they jumped to an 18-8 lead. WVU never looked back as Kopecky posted five kills to aid her team to a victory.
Kopecky posted a season-high 15 kills, six digs and three service aces against Army, while Riedel posted 34 assists in her first match as a starter.
In WVU’s first match of the day, six kills from apiece from George Mason’s Kelly McCarter and Holly Goode fueled the Patriots to a win in set one, despite four lead changes. Tied at 18, junior Kylie Armbruster gave the Mountaineers a 20-18 advantage after two-straight service aces. However, George Mason fought back as Goode finished the set with a kill.
Senior Bonnie West scored first for WVU on a hard service ace for a 1-0 lead. The two teams continued to battle throughout the set, but this time it was the Patriots' Kelsey Bohman who landed six kills and a.500 hitting clip to aid George Mason to the victory.
WVU started strong in set three with good defensive play, but despite their best efforts, lost to the Patriots.
Junior Serinna Russo led the Mountaineers against George Mason with 12 kills and 16 digs, for her third double-double of the season.
WVU returns to action on Sept. 10-11, in Winston-Salem, N.C., with the Black and Gold Challenge hosted by Wake Forest.
