Women’s Volleyball Splits on First Day of USCAA Championships

November 10, 2017Posted in: Athletics

The Illinois Tech Women’s Volleyball team opened up the USCAA Championship’s pool play portion of the tournament on November 9. The fourth-seeded Scarlet Hawks fell to #9 Maine-Fort Kent 2-0 before downing #8 Penn State Brandywine in the best-of-three round.

Scores

  • UMFK 2, Illinois Tech 0 (25-20, 25-20).
  • Illinois Tech 2, PSU-Brandywine 0 (25-18, 25-17)

How it Happened – UMFK Match

  • Both teams impressed on the attack in the first set, hitting over .250% (UMFK .312%, Illinois Tech .276%).
  • The Bengals took the set’s first substantial lead, pulling ahead 10-6 early before extending the advantage to seven at 20-13.
  • Illinois Tech used a 5-1 run to get back to within two, but the Bengals used two late aces to vault back into momentum and win the first set.
  • Set two was back and forth early, with no team leading by more than two until an attack error put the Bengals up 19-16.
  • The Bengals managed to keep the Illinois Tech offense at bay the rest of the way, but some errors by UMFK left the door open for a comeback. The Bengals rattled off the last three points to win the match.

Stats to Know – UMFK Match

  • The Bengals were able to down Illinois Tech thanks in large part to an impressive .288 hit percentage.
  • Illinois Tech was out dug by UMFK 30-27 and recorded just 18 assists compared to the Bengals’ 24.
  • Each team had five total blocks.

Scarlet Hawk Standouts – UMFK Match

How it Happened – PSU-Brandywinde Match

  • Brandywine took an early 4-2 lead, but the Scarlet Hawks would not be denied. Behind the offense of Burton and Miner, Illinois Tech went on a huge run to build a 13-6 lead.
  • The Scarlet Hawks continued to pour it on later in the set, going on a 6-0 run highlighted by two Hassell kills.
  • Brandywine would creep to back within four late, but the Scarlet Hawks scored the final three points of the set for the win.
  • In set two, the Scarlet Hawks scored the first three points en route to building an early 6-1 advantage.
  • Brandywine would work to bring the score back to within two at 16-14, but the Scarlet Hawks pulled back ahead at 23-15. A van der Sanden kill ended the set and the match.

Scarlet Hawk Standouts– PSU Brandywine Match

  • Burton was dominant, recording nine kills and three block assists to go along with a .727 hit percentage.
  • Miner was also ultra-impressive with seven kills and a .700 hit percentage.
  • The setting duo of Courtney Darling (12) and Freund (11) each had double-digit assists.
  • Curcio led the squad with 14 digs and two service aces.

Stats to Know– PSU Brandywine Match

  • Illinois Tech outhit Brandywine .283% to .018%, recording 23 kills compared to PSU’s 15.
  • Illinois Tech also tallied eight assisted blocks compared to just two for Brandywine.
  • The Scarlet Hawks assisted on all 23 kills.

Up Next

  • Illinois Tech resumes pool play on Friday, November 11 at 10:00 a.m. with a matchup against #5 Carlow before taking on #1 Florida National at 2:30 p.m. If Illinois Tech places as one of the top four out of five teams in Pool A, the Scarlet Hawks will open single-elimination bracket play at either 4 p.m. or 6 p.m. Bracket play is a best-of-five format for each match.
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