Army West Point Athletics
Saturday, October 10
West Point, NY
7 PM
Army West Point
13-6, 5-1PL
3
vs
2
Navy
2-17, 0-6PL
1
2
3
4
5
F
Navy
21
17
25
25
13
2
Army
25
25
20
19
15
3
Volleyball Downs Navy to Win First Star of 2015
October 10, 2015 | Volleyball
WEST POINT, N.Y. – With the Star on the line, the Army West Point volleyball team defeated Navy in five sets during Saturday night's rival match. The Black Knights dominated in the first two sets and came back in the fifth to claim the Star with set scores of 25-21, 25-17, 20-25, 19-25 and 15-13.
"I am proud of the team tonight for getting the win," said head coach Alma Kovaci. "Every Army-Navy game is always intense. Navy did a great job adjusting to us and the offense in sets three and four was tough, but our team fought back hard. I am very proud of Maria for handling a high pressure situation and taking Navy out of system.
"I am also especially proud of Vanessa Edwards for staying calm throughout the match and for her work throughout the years and getting her 2,000th career assist. Overall, the coaching staff did a great job adjusting. The atmosphere was electric, thanks to the fans and USMA leadership for being here and making an impact and supporting our team until the very end."
With tonight's win, Army now leads Navy 44-12 and is 26-5 at home against the Mids. The volleyball team secured the first Star in the 2015-16 Star Series, which Army now leads 1-0-1. The Black Knights improve to 13-6 overall and 5-1 in the Patriot League, while Navy falls to 2-17 and 0-6 in the conference.
With tonight's performance, Vanessa Edwards surpassed the 2,000 career assist milestone and joins just six others in program history who bear that distinction. Edwards totaled 47 assists on the night to push her career total to 2,007, while also adding 11 digs and one ace.
Vanessa Wesley led the offense with a career-high 17 kills and also tallied three block assists. Nicole Perri recorded 14 kills, while Carolyn Bockrath added 11 and Jaden Pickell totaled 10. Shannel Chong led the team with 17 digs and Pickell chipped in 10.
In the fifth set, Olivia Fairfield forced the ball down the middle to make it 3-all. Wesley hit an off handed shot and earned a kill to go up 4-3, but Navy tallied a kill to re-tie the score at 4-4. Wesley recorded another kill to give Army a one-point advantage. Navy called timeout after trailing 6-4 when they recorded an attacking error.
After the timeout the Midshipmen earned a point to bring the score to 6-5, but another kill by Wesley gave Army a two point lead. Navy and Army traded kills to make the score 8-6 in favor of the Black Knights.
With the score tied at 10-all, Perri stepped up to the net to tally a kill. Maria Velicu came off the bench to serve for Army in the critical time of the match. Wesley notched a kill before a Navy error gave the Black Knights a 13-10 lead. Navy scored a point on a kill to bring the set to 13-11, still in favor of Army.
A service ace by Navy set Army up for the match point. Navy would fight back and earn a kill and regain the serve at 14-13. However, a service error by the Midshipmen would give Army the match point to win the Star.
In set one, Army was down 6-1, but multiple points by Bockrath and Wesley kept Army in the set and tied it at 15-all. Perri gave Army the go-ahead point at 17-16 with a tip to trip the Navy defense. She then tallied a kill to give the Black Knights a two point lead.
Perri added another kill when she shot cross court on an assist from Edwards to bring the score to 20-18. She added two more kills for Army's 23rd and 24th points and a joint block by Fairfield and Wesley sealed the set for the Cadets.
The Black Knights continued to excel during set two. The blocking duo of Fairfield and Wesley joined together again to give Army a 13-11 lead before Wesley tallied another kill on the night. A Navy service error helped the Cadets maintain their lead at 15-14.
Bockrath placed a kill down the line to push the score to 19-15 in favor of Army. She had a solo block two points later to make the score 21-15 and joined with Edwards on a block to set the Black Knights up for set point. Navy earned another kill, but Edwards assisted to Perri to win set two 25-17.
After the break, the Midshipmen bounced back to win sets three (25-20) and four (25-19). Army and Navy battled back and forth, but the Mids came out on top until set five where the Black Knights bounced back to win the match.
The Black Knights return to Gillis Field House Oct. 16-17 when they host Lehigh and Bucknell.
For up-to-date information about Army volleyball, please follow @ArmyWP_VB on Twitter and Instagram.
"I am proud of the team tonight for getting the win," said head coach Alma Kovaci. "Every Army-Navy game is always intense. Navy did a great job adjusting to us and the offense in sets three and four was tough, but our team fought back hard. I am very proud of Maria for handling a high pressure situation and taking Navy out of system.
"I am also especially proud of Vanessa Edwards for staying calm throughout the match and for her work throughout the years and getting her 2,000th career assist. Overall, the coaching staff did a great job adjusting. The atmosphere was electric, thanks to the fans and USMA leadership for being here and making an impact and supporting our team until the very end."
With tonight's win, Army now leads Navy 44-12 and is 26-5 at home against the Mids. The volleyball team secured the first Star in the 2015-16 Star Series, which Army now leads 1-0-1. The Black Knights improve to 13-6 overall and 5-1 in the Patriot League, while Navy falls to 2-17 and 0-6 in the conference.
With tonight's performance, Vanessa Edwards surpassed the 2,000 career assist milestone and joins just six others in program history who bear that distinction. Edwards totaled 47 assists on the night to push her career total to 2,007, while also adding 11 digs and one ace.
Vanessa Wesley led the offense with a career-high 17 kills and also tallied three block assists. Nicole Perri recorded 14 kills, while Carolyn Bockrath added 11 and Jaden Pickell totaled 10. Shannel Chong led the team with 17 digs and Pickell chipped in 10.
In the fifth set, Olivia Fairfield forced the ball down the middle to make it 3-all. Wesley hit an off handed shot and earned a kill to go up 4-3, but Navy tallied a kill to re-tie the score at 4-4. Wesley recorded another kill to give Army a one-point advantage. Navy called timeout after trailing 6-4 when they recorded an attacking error.
After the timeout the Midshipmen earned a point to bring the score to 6-5, but another kill by Wesley gave Army a two point lead. Navy and Army traded kills to make the score 8-6 in favor of the Black Knights.
With the score tied at 10-all, Perri stepped up to the net to tally a kill. Maria Velicu came off the bench to serve for Army in the critical time of the match. Wesley notched a kill before a Navy error gave the Black Knights a 13-10 lead. Navy scored a point on a kill to bring the set to 13-11, still in favor of Army.
A service ace by Navy set Army up for the match point. Navy would fight back and earn a kill and regain the serve at 14-13. However, a service error by the Midshipmen would give Army the match point to win the Star.
In set one, Army was down 6-1, but multiple points by Bockrath and Wesley kept Army in the set and tied it at 15-all. Perri gave Army the go-ahead point at 17-16 with a tip to trip the Navy defense. She then tallied a kill to give the Black Knights a two point lead.
Perri added another kill when she shot cross court on an assist from Edwards to bring the score to 20-18. She added two more kills for Army's 23rd and 24th points and a joint block by Fairfield and Wesley sealed the set for the Cadets.
The Black Knights continued to excel during set two. The blocking duo of Fairfield and Wesley joined together again to give Army a 13-11 lead before Wesley tallied another kill on the night. A Navy service error helped the Cadets maintain their lead at 15-14.
Bockrath placed a kill down the line to push the score to 19-15 in favor of Army. She had a solo block two points later to make the score 21-15 and joined with Edwards on a block to set the Black Knights up for set point. Navy earned another kill, but Edwards assisted to Perri to win set two 25-17.
After the break, the Midshipmen bounced back to win sets three (25-20) and four (25-19). Army and Navy battled back and forth, but the Mids came out on top until set five where the Black Knights bounced back to win the match.
The Black Knights return to Gillis Field House Oct. 16-17 when they host Lehigh and Bucknell.
For up-to-date information about Army volleyball, please follow @ArmyWP_VB on Twitter and Instagram.
Team Stats
NAVY
ARMY
Kills
67
58
Errors
29
17
Attempts
169
157
Hitting %
.225
.261
Points
79.0
71.0
Assists
64
53
Aces
6
3
Blocks
6.0
10.0
Game Leaders
Kills
17
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Kills
14
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
11
Aces
0
Blocks
6
Kills
10
Aces
1
Blocks
1
Players Mentioned
Middle Blocker
/ Volleyball
Libero
/ Volleyball
Setter
/ Volleyball
Outside Hitter/Middle Blocker
/ VolleyballOutside Hitter
/ VolleyballOutside Hitter
/ Volleyball
Defensive Specialist/Outside Hitter
/ VolleyballMiddle Blocker/Right Side Hitter
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