Marquette Volleyball Closes Out UWGB, Marquette Gym

Golden Eagles Sweep Phoenix in Marquette Gym Finale

MILWAUKEE, Wis. ? It was the end of an era Tuesday night, as Marquette Volleyball officially closed the book on the Marquette Gym. The Golden Eagles finished the historic gym?s run in style, with a solid 30-24, 30-27, 31-29 win against intrastate rival UW-Green Bay.

The match got off to a sloppy start, as the teams traded unassisted kills on overpasses. However, the middle blockers played a big part for the Golden Eagles, as Ann Lopata converted on sliding attacks, and Erica Heisser added a block and an unassisted kill to stake Marquette to take a 9-4 lead. A UW-Green Bay timeout slowed the bleeding for the Phoenix, but Aga Niemcezewska?s excuse-me tip following a Marquette scramble put the Golden Eagles up 16-11. From there MU would capitalize on back-to-back Phoenix errors, and two consecutive kills for Niemcezewska on the weak-side, to take a 30-24 win.

Game two saw Marquette plagued by mental errors, as the Golden Eagles racked up a service error and two attack errors to give UWGB a 6-2 lead. An ace by UW-Green Bay?s Amanda Timmers put the Phoenix in a commanding 24-19 lead. However, MU would shake loose of its funk, as Niemcezewska and Theresa Coughlin each chipped in key kills, to lead Marquette on an 11-3 run to steal game two 30-27.

Niemcezewska was stymied on her first attack of the third game, but quickly recovered to take back two points on consecutive kills, one by tipping over the Phoenix double block, the other by tooling off the right side of the block. However, the middle play that started the match strong for Marquette closed the match strong, as Ann Lopata notched four kills in the final frame, on .500 hitting. Heisser also chipped in three kills and two digs, to keep MU in the thick of it. The final game of the match was knotted at 29 when mental errors struck UW-Green Bay. First, in returning the Phoenix serve, a mis-handled pass by Marquette?s Erin Freer found a gap in the middle of the UWGB court for a quick point. The final point came and went just as quickly, as Coughlin served an ace to the backline of the Phoenix pass-recieve, which sailed between two passers.

Head Coach Pati Rolf addressed the importance of her team?s middle play, ?the middle really came together to open up the outsides. Offensively speaking, I think we really kept them off balance.?

While frustrated at times by the young Golden Eagles? inconsistency, Rolf found some positive in the workman-like effort the team put out, ?It wasn?t a pretty game, but things got done, and we stayed focused. We continue to learn and improve, which I?m impressed with.?

Leading the way for the Marquette (11-15, 7-5 C-USA) were sophomores Theresa Coughlin (16 kills), Aga Niemcezewska and Erica Heisser (nine kills each). Marquette also got solid middle play out of Ann Lopata (nine kills on .318 hitting) and Erin Freer (eight kills, eight digs). Marquette?s current six-game winning streak is the longest in Head Coach Pati Rolf?s tenure with the Golden Eagles, and the longest for the program in seven years.

The Phoenix (19-9, 9-3 Horizon) were led by Janelle Tomlinson and Jessie Theys, who totaled 18 and 16 kills, respectively. UW-Green Bay also featured three players in double-figures for digs, Jackie Rosen (17), Tomlinson (12) and Krystle Lange (11).

Marquette travels to DePaul for its regular season finale on Friday. First serve in Chicago, Ill. is scheduled for 7 p.m.