MU Rallies Back To Win
At Findlay
September
12,
2008
BOX SCORE
FINDLAY, Ohio - -
In a match that took over two hours to play, the seventh ranked Madonna
volleyball team had to come back from down 2-0 to rally and win 3-2 on Friday at
the University of Findlay. MU improves to 14-1 on the season while UF falls to
7-3.
Set one
was a back and forth affair with MU hitting .242 and Findlay connecting at a
.293 pace. MU was up early but UF came back in front of its home crowd to take
the opening set 25-21.
In set
two, it looked like the Crusaders would tie the match at one but five straight
aces at the line from Abby LaVigne took the Oilers from down 21-20 to a 25-21
win and a two sets to none lead.
Set three
was all Madonna as the Crusaders hit .462, putting down 14 kills against just
two errors to take the set in convincing 25-18 fashion.
The fourth
set was as dramatic as the first three as UF and MU traded the lead back and
forth before timely digs by libero Amanda Koszela and attacks from
Lubovj Tihomirova, Whitney Fuelling and Mary McGinnis gave MU
the 25-21 win.
The fifth
and deciding set saw UF race out to a 5-1 lead and forced MU boss Jerry
Abraham to spend a time out. Coming out of the break, MU got the side out
but the Oilers got right back on the offense, taking an 8-4 lead as the two
teams traded sides. It became 9-4 and MU was down 12-6 before Koszela stepped to
the service line for MU.
After
making it 13-12 with steady play in all facets of the game by Madonna, Findlay
called a time out. That time out did little to break Koszela as she served out,
winning the match with an ace to give MU the 15-12 set win and a 3-2 match win.
Tihomirova
- the reigning WHAC Player of the Week - led MU with 21 kills and hit at a .283
clip. Fuelling back her effort with 15 kills of her own, against just one error
to hit at a .500 pace. Koszela, who donned the libero jersey after set two, dig
a career best 14 balls while posting four service aces, none bigger than the
match winner. Brynn Kerr joined Koszela in double digit digs with 10
while Inta Grinvalds handed out 39 assists.
The win
moved Abraham just one behind Mt. Vernon Nazarene boss Paul Swanson's NAIA
record 859 wins. Abraham, his 858 wins and the seventh ranked Crusaders travel
to Aquinas on Tuesday for a 7pm match with the Saints.
Contact:
Patrick Moore, Sports Information Director
(734) 432-5834
