Marquette Falls to Syracuse, 3-1

Oct. 20, 2007

SYRACUSE, N.Y. - In a hard-fought, four-game match the Marquette volleyball team dropped a 3-1 (26-30, 30-25, 21-30, 29-31) contest to Syracuse on Saturday. MU's road woes continue as they fall to 8-10 overall, 5-3 in BIG EAST play.

Senior Kimberley Todd and junior Ashlee Fisher led the Golden Eagles with 16 kills apiece. Todd notched her 12th double-double of the season also collecting 12 digs. Sophomore Caryn Mastandrea tallied her first career double-double dishing out 17 assists and collecting a career-high 10 digs. Senior Jenn Brown hit well, slamming 12 kills and hitting a .417 clip. Senior Katie Weidner dished out 32 assists, while sophomore Hailey Viola grabbed 13 digs.

"Syracuse played well," head coach Pati Rolf sad. "They had strong serves and were scrappy players. They did a good job of defending their court."

Game one was a tight contest all the way through with the team's trading points back-and-forth. Tied at 13, Fisher smashed a kill, followed by an error by the Orange to jump to a 15-13 lead, but Syracuse came back and the score was again tied at 19 apiece. With the score tied at 23, MU faltered as the Orange closed out the game on a 7-3 run to earn the first game victory, 26-30. Fisher and Brown each posted four kills in the frame hitting .571.

The Golden Eagles jumped to an early 3-1 lead in the second stanza on kills from Todd, Fisher and senior Tiffany Helmbrecht. SU mounted a comeback to take an 8-5 lead, but Marquette ran off eight unanswered to regroup with an 11-8 advantage driven by three kills from Todd. With a 23-20 lead, the Orange scored two consecutive point to pull within one, but the Golden Eagles notched four unanswered to hold a 27-23 lead. Todd smashed a kill to complete a 30-25 second game victory and picked up seven kills in the frame.

Syracuse would take an early 5-3 advantage in game three, but Mastandrea served up four points for MU as they pulled within a point at 8-7. Trailing 19-13, Marquette saw the Orange go on an 8-3 run to hold a 27-17 advantage. Syracuse earned the chance to serve for game point at 29-20, but a kill from Fisher would force another try. A miscue from the Golden Eagles gave Syracuse the 30-21 victory in the third game. Todd and Fisher paced Marquette with three kills each.

The fourth game was close from the beginning, with the team's tied at eight each. Viola served three consecutive points to take the score to 12-11 in Syracuse's favor. Tied at 18, the Orange scored two back-to-back points for a 20-18 lead, but the Golden Eagles tied the score at 22 following a kill from Todd. With a 25-24 advantage, junior Jessica Kieser served thee consecutive balls to stay in front, 26-25, and as the Orange mounted a comeback, Fisher smashed a kill for a 27-27 tie. An error from MU gave the Orange a chance to serve for match-point, but Todd forced another try following a kill. With a 30-29 lead, Syracuse again served for match point and grabbed the victory, 31-29.

Cheryl Cobbina notched a match-high 19 kills to lead the Orange (13-10, 4-4), as Kacie MacTavish tallied 18 kills. April Quigley dished out a match-high 54 assists.

The Golden Eagles continue their road trip as they travel to Pittsburgh on Saturday. Oct. 27, at 1 p.m. CT.