Oct. 15, 2005

Box Score

EASTON, Pa. (www.lafayette.edu) - The Lafayette volleyball team clicked on all cylinders Saturday night, dominating games one and three en route a 3-0 (30-23, 30-25, 30-16) win over Providence at Kirby Sports Center, while the team improved to 12-9 on the season.

The Leopards gave an exuberant crowd something to cheer about right away, as they opened an 11-0 lead on the Friars to start game one. In fact, Providence gained its first point to make it 11-1 on a Lafayette error.

The Leopards continued to pound the ball and finding holes in the Providence defense to maintain their lead. That was until the Friars began to heat up, mounting an 8-3 run to cut the deficit to 14-9 on kill from Nonie Ferguson. However, junior Veronica Canto-Ponce promptly halted the stretch with a kill to the opposite corner, re-igniting the Lafayette offense. With the pesky Friar club not going away quietly, the scoreboard read 24-19 late. It was then that sophomore Michaela Donohue pounded five kills down the stretch to put the game away for Lafayette. A Canto-Ponce kill ended the session.

The start of game two was going by a different script, as the teams exchanged points in the early going and continued throughout. A Providence block evened the score at 25-25 in what would be the final tie of the game. Canto-Ponce and Donohue registered two and one kill, respectively, as the Leopards out-scored Providence 5-1, building a 2-0 match lead.

Heading into the third session, the Leopards came out swinging and hit a match-high .333 for the game. A service ace from freshman Ainhoa Barturen gave Lafayette its largest lead of the game, 15-10. The Friars did mount a mild comeback, climbing to within seven, 20-13, on a Lafayette error. On the ensuing play, Canto-Ponce again jumpstarted a Lafayette run with a kill, and the Leopards scored nine of the last 12 points to take the match.

Lafayette hit .270 with 45 total kills on the night, while holding the Friars to .119 overall. Canto-Ponce hit a blistering .417 with a match-high 17 kills and just two errors on 36 attempts. She also chipped in with 11 digs. Donohue led Lafayette with 17 defensive digs, while also putting down 10 kills (.375), while senior Catherine Herchenroder registered nine.

Getting her first start of the season, Barturen also chipped in with 11 digs, while classmate Megan Carter put up 36 assists.

Providence dropped to 4-19.

The Leopards return to action on Oct. 19 as the team hosts Loyola (Md.) at 7: 00 p.m.