Sept. 24, 2005

Box Score

EASTON, Pa. (www.lafayette.edu) - After dominating the opening two games, the Lafayette women's volleyball team let a victory over Army slip through its fingers. The Leopards dropped a heartbreaker, falling in the final three games of a five-game match to the Black Knights Saturday at Kirby Sports Center.

Lafayette opened the match, finding holes all over the Army defense to take the first two games, 30-20 and 30-22, respectively. In game one, Lafayette set the tone early and strung together five straight points to go ahead 14-9 midway through. Lafayette led by as many as nine, 21-12, after one of four service aces from junior Veronica Canto-Ponce. The Leopards continued their assault before taking the game 30-20.

The second game was a different story. In a game with six ties in the opening minutes, the teams played toe-to-toe and knotted the score at 17 all. From that point, a kill from junior Shannon Fisher ignited a 3-0 Lafayette run highlighted by consecutive kills from Canto-Ponce. After a long volley preceding match point, sophomore Michaela Donohue drilled a kill to make it 29-22. An Army attack error ended the game.

Lafayette struggled to keep composure throughout most of the third game, as the Leopards registered just five kills to Army's 15. After teams were tied, 3-3, Army went on a 12-4 run to pull ahead 15-7. The Black Knights led by as many as 13, 23-10, late in the game and cruised to the 30-16 win.

Game four opened with a seesawing score, as both teams fought to the end. Lafayette dug itself into an 11-6 hole before mounting a comeback in the close 30-28 loss. The Leopards led by as many as four on multiple occasions, only to see the lead erased by Army hitters. Lafayette owned a 25-23 lead on a kill from senior Catherine Herchenroder before Army pulled off the come-from-behind win, outscoring the Leopards 7-3 down the stretch.

A forced and deciding fifth game spelled trouble for the Leopards. Army took a quick 3-0 lead and led by as many as five, 12-7, when Lafayette head coach Terri Dadio Campbell called for the timeout. The Leopards struggled to get any offense going, and ended the game with the 15-8 loss.

Lafayette hit 18 percent on the day, while Army hit a slightly better 20 percent. Lafayette won the battle of the blocks 11-7. Canto-Ponce and Fisher led the Leopards with five and 4.5 blocks, respectively.

Canto-Ponce and Donohue shared top honors for the Leopards with 16 kills apiece. The duo also finished with 24 and 26 digs, respectively. Herchenroder put down 15 kills and just two errors for a team-high 34 percent. Four Army players finished with double-figures in kills.

Freshman setter Megan Carter ended the day with 44 assists to go with 14 digs.

The loss dropped the Leopards to 9-5 on the season and 1-1 in conference play. The Black Knights improved to 8-2 and 1-0 in the Patriot League.

Lafayette is back in action for a non-league contest, as the team hosts Rider Sept. 28 at 7 p.