Lauren Budde Powers Bears Past New York University in NCAA Quarterfinals
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St. Louis, Mo., November 19, 2010 – The third-ranked and defending NCAA Division III national champion Washington University in St. Louis volleyball team punched its ticket back to the NCAA semifinals with a 3-0 (25-15, 25-16, 25-10) victory over No. 15 New York University on Friday, Nov. 19, in the NCAA quarterfinals held at the Washington University Field House in St. Louis, Mo.
Washington U. (35-3) will face another University Athletic Association (UAA) rival on Saturday in the NCAA semifinals in top-ranked Emory University, who picked up a 3-2 win over No. 5 Christopher Newport earlier on Friday.
Washington U. and Emory have met twice this season, splitting their two meetings, with the Bears earning a 3-2 victory on Oct. 16, and Emory picking up a 3-1 win two weeks ago in the UAA Championship Match.
Washington University overcame a slow start by taking advantage of a struggling New York offense in the first set. The Violets hit -.051 as a team in the opening frame but the Bears attacked just .194. Junior middle hitter Lauren Budde led the way for Washington U., tallying four kills while hitting .429 with five digs.
The opening set was tied at 10-10 before Washington U. went on a 5-1 run. Budde registered back-to-back kills to break an 11-11 tie and give the Bears a 13-11 lead, and the WUSTL advantage was four following a Mina Baban attack error. Sophomore outside hitter Drew Hargrave tallied a kill to conclude a 7-0 WUSTL run.
In the second set freshman Meghan Byrne and sophomore setter Marilee Fisher helped pull the team back on track. Byrne broke an 8-8 tie with a kill and Fisher scored on a setter dump to increase the lead to two. Byrne scored once again, this time by blocking New York’s Beth Fionda and completed the four-point swing with yet another kill.
A Jessica Prepolec kill pulled the Violets to within two, 15-13, but the Bears scored four-straight points yet again to break open the second set. Budde added five more kills to her total in the second frame while Hargrave registered four terminations. The Bears improved on their first-set attack percentage by hitting .289 in the second-set win, holding the Violets to a .133 hitting percentage and just 15 kills through two sets.
The Bears took complete control from start to finish in the third set, sprinting out to a 12-3 lead and never looking back. Budde, Hargrave and freshman right side Tessa Blood each recorded a kill during the decisive early 8-0 scoring run that cemented Washington University’s return to the national semifinals.
Budde finished her marquee performance with 14 kills while hitting a team-high .458, also tallying nine digs and four blocks. Byrne finished with 10 kills and a .318 hitting percentage and Fisher notched 33 assists and five digs.
The Violets struggled to get their offense on track through the match, finishing with a .019 team hitting percentage. Sally Downs and Erin McLaughlin each recorded six kills for NYU, while Alexis Schwartz finished with 14 digs.
Bear Notebeook: Friday night’s match was just the second time Washington U. and New York have met in the postseason, the only other being the 2003 national championship match, won 3-0 by Washington U. in La Verne, Calif. … Washington U. improves to 36-2 all-time at the Washington University Field House during postseason acation and the Bears have won 33-straight home matches dating back to last season.