Axewomen back on track with 3-0 sweep of UNB
22/01/2012 5:05 pm
Volleyball tied at sixth in AUS standings improving to 3-7
WOLFVILLE, NS - The Axewomen volleyball team got back on track with a 3-0 sweep of the UNB Varsity Reds. Improving to 3-7 and tied with Moncton for sixth place in the AUS standings and the last playoff spot, Acadia delivered a solid first set, blasting off to an early 10-1 lead.
An aggressive start to the first set positioned the Axewomen to take a commanding 20-6 lead in the closing minute, grabbing a 25-10 first set victory. Hitters Alana Murphy, Alyssa Berry and Kristin Bolduc each posted 2 kills each in the opening game.
A tighter second set followed with the Varsity Reds grabbing their first lead of the match on a Vanja Mitrovic kill that setup a 8-7 lead. UNB lost their lead at 13-12 when a kill by Nicole Davidson pushed the Axewomen into a lead that would not be matched by the V-Reds until a 22-22 tie created by an Alana Murphy attack error. Murphy would make up for the error with Acadia points off of a Murphy kill. A Nicole Davidson service ace and a block by Meg Rector solidified the 25-22 second game win.
With the third and eventual final set tied at 20, UNB edged forward, setting up a 24-23 match point, but an important kill by Meg Rector pushed the game beyond 25. A back and forth battle, highlighted by kills on both sides, resulted in a service ace by Alana Murphy; kills by Kristin Bolduc and Nicole Davidson and a V-Red attack error, handed Acadia a 31-29 third set victory. Vanja Mitrovic led UNB with a game high 13 kills.
Acadia's Meg Rector led the Axewomen with an impressive 0.500 hitting percentage that included 7 kills while senior outside hitter Alana Murphy led Acadia with 10 kills. Nicole Davidson added 8 kills.
Head Coach Joffre Ribout was pleased with team effort. “The team had a great start in the first set and remained focused in a tighter second game. Falling behind in the final set, we were able to regain our focus and eventually closing down the UNB Lead. We stayed together in sets two and three and we hope this rubs off for our remaining games this season. We know we will need to fight through these situations the rest of the year".
The Axewomen will head to Halifax this Wednesday night as they take on the Dalhousie Tigers, making up for a postponed game this past Friday night due to inclement weather. Acadia will host Memorial next weekend for two games beginning on Saturday night at 7pm.