Volleyball Defeats University of Chicago and Case Western Reserve 3-1
BOX 1 | BOX 2
Rochester, N.Y., October 15, 2011 – The No. 2 Washington University in St. Louis volleyball team saw its NCAA Division III record consecutive set streak come to an end but the Bears remained unbeaten on the year following a pair of 3-1 wins over No. 16 University of Chicago (22-25, 25-16, 25-14, 25-22) and Case Western Reserve University (25-19, 25-14, 22-25, 25-20) at the second University Athletic Association (UAA) round robin of the season on Saturday afternoon in Rochester, N.Y.
Washington University entered the weekend having won all 63 sets it played in this year but the Bears had that run snapped with a 25-22 loss in the opening set against Chicago. The Bears had an early lead against the Maroons, jumping in front 11-9 thanks to a pair of kills from sophomore middle hitter Kaia Schwartz and pushed the advantage to 14-9 when senior middle hitter Lauren Budde blocked down an attack to complete a run of three-straight Chicago attack errors.
However, the Maroons stormed back, tying the frame at 19-19 and winning six of the final nine points to come away with the three-point win. Washington U. hit just .125 as a team in the opening set but saw the offense get right back on track in the second, when the Bears tallied 14 kills while hitting a match-high .364.
After registering just one kill in the opening set, sophomore outside hitter Meghan Byrne had four kills on six swings in the second to pace the WUSTL offense. She added four more kills in the third-set victory and finished the match with 11.
The Bears also swung the action back in their favor by putting up a strong block along the front line. Washington U. had just one team block through the first two sets but had six in the third set alone on the way to 10 team blocks in the win. Budde had a hand in six of those putbacks, finishing with three solo and three block assists to go along with her 15 digs and 12 kills.
Junior outside hitter Drew Hargrave also reached double digits in kill, with a team-high five of her 12 scores coming in the fourth-set victory. Junior setter Marilee Fisher had 47 assists and eight digs and Schwartz hit .467 with nine kills and three total blocks.
The Bears got off to a very hot start against Case Western Reserve, hitting .333 as a team in the 25-19 opening set win and appeared to be headed to a sweep thanks to an 11-point 25-14 win in the second. Byrne had nine of her season-high 17 kills through the first two sets and she almost finished the match with a double-double, also corralling nine digs.
Despite Budde’s impressive performance in the third set where she finished with eight kills and two solo blocks, Case Western held off Washington University late in the frame to grab a three-point win. The Bears went on to reassert control in the fourth as Byrne and Hargrave paced the team with seven and five kills respectively.
Fisher recorded a season-high 57 assists against the Spartans, falling just five shy of her career-high of 62. She also had a season-high 11 digs and four aces. Junior libero Kelly Pang led three Bears in double figures in digs with 24 and Budde hit .421 in the win with 17 kills, seven digs and five solo blocks.
Washington University (23-0, 5-0) returns to action on Sunday, Oct. 16, for the final day of the UAA round robin. The Bears face the University of Rochester at 10 a.m. (ET), with a showdown against No. 3 Emory University looming later in the day. Washington U. will face defending UAA champion Emory Eagles at 2 p.m. (ET).