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Sept. 3, 2010
Call VB Contact Michael Stambaugh for more details - 386.481.2278 - DeLAND, Fla. - The LadyCats of Bethune-Cookman volleyball displayed an up-an-down day to open the Stetson Tournament on Friday. B-CU opened play against the Cowgirls of Wyoming, playing a tough game, in which they outdigged Wyoming, but fell by heavy margins against the more athletic western team, 3-0. Facing a team, in Stetson, that a solidly played game could put it away, the LadyCats came up short and never got into the flow, falling 3-1 to the Lady Hatters on their home court. Opening the tournament with B-CU, the Cowgirls went right at the LadyCats, hitting a .320 as a team and holding B-CU down, with a negative hitting percentage, winning the first set 25-12. However, the LadyCats bounced back, and got their defense under control, persevering to provide a much closer game in the second set, as UW came out on top 25-19. Wyoming moved in to finish off the match, claiming another 25-12 victory in the third, but were never able to get back into the hitting flow of the first game. "We knew coming in to play Wyoming, we would have to really buckle down as a team," said Head Coach Vanessa Cogswell, "as they have nine players hitting above .240. With that being said, they are a very efficient team, and it was great to see the ladies hold them to just .182." Though the scores may have tough margins, the stats reveal more the fight that the LadyCats put in. "We outdigged them with 38 digs to their 36, while they had six team blocks and we made five. Only eight kills seperated us on the match," noted Cogswell. "The difference was our hitting percentage and serve receive errors. We were our worst enemy out there with just too many unforced errors."
With one of B-CU's top scorers, unable to play, back in Daytona Beach, the Wildcats showed less options in their attack. Leading the team from the outside, Krysta Gardner came away with seven kills and a .267 Hit %, while Linda Nwabuko dropped in four kills. Frances Rodriguez led the setters with 11 assists. Defensively, freshman Jennifer Jimenez produced 11 of the team's digs. Returning to face tournament-host Stetson, the team did not show up in the same gritty fashion. The LadyCats found themselves often playing out of role and showing too much inefficiency. In the turmoil, B-CU collected a season-high 32 errors against the Lady Hatters. Though the LadyCats took the first set, looking like a great start, in a close game, winning 25-23, the tide quickly turned. B-CU couldn't get ahead in the scoring column, first falling 25-17 in the second, and 25-19 in the third, then dropping the third 25-21 to seal the 3-1 loss to the winless Lady Hatters. The LadyCats showed good hitting up front at times, but struggled to find scoring elsewhere. Krysta Gardner put in 13 kills to lead the team, while Linda Nwabuko was just behind with 12, and a .200 hitting percentage. The two combined for more than half of the teams total kills. Alexis Bliese set up the attack, collecting 25 assists, while Jennifer Jimenez led the team with her career-best 21 digs, nearly doubling her previous high. "The game was frustrating, and noone really played their role," said Cogswell of the Stetson match, "greater efficiency, aggressiveness and discipline is what we need as we move forward in this season." The LadyCats return to the court Saturday morning at the Stetson Invitational, taking on Wofford at 11:00 am, before facing Florida Atlantic in a rematch of last week's match at 5:00 pm. Stay tuned to B-CUathletics.com as we cover all of Saturday's games in DeLand.
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