Sept. 28, 2005
Box Score
EASTON, Pa. (www.lafayette.edu) - Lafayette pulled together a match-winning performance in the fifth and deciding game against Rider Wednesday night at Kirby Sports Center en route to the 3-2 victory.
The match marks the first Lafayette victory in its series with Rider since the 1996 season.
Rider opened the match with a 30-24 win as the Leopards hit a mid-game slump. With the score reading 18-18, the Broncs put together a 6-1 run to give Rider some distance, 22-19. This stretch would prove to be the difference in the game, as Lafayette was never able to recover. The Leopards hit for their match-low .179, including 11 kills, in the opening game.
The Leopards rebounded to win a close game two, 31-29. Lafayette trailed by as many as nine, 19-10,midway through. The Leopards were able to chip away at the deficit and trailed 24-20 late in the game when freshman libero Kathleen Kretzmer stepped to the line, providing serving consistency for the Leopards. A kill from sophoore Maura Kelly ignited a 7-3 Lafayette run, highlighted by a trio of kills from sophomore Michaela Donohue to give the Leopards a 28-27 advantage. Appropriately, the game ended with a Donohue kill from freshman setter Megan Carter.
Again the Leopards struggled to find their rhythm midway through the third game, but were able to gain composure late before falling 30-28. The lead went back-and-forth early on, but Rider pulled ahead by as many as seven, 15-8, on an ace from Embrey Minor. Lafayette responded with a 10-3 run, capped by a kill from senior Catherine Herchenroder, to tie the game at 18 all. From then out, the game featured three ties, but Lafayette was never able to steal the lead.
The Leopards set the tone early in the fourth game, as Carter served for six straight Leopard points to put her team ahead 6-0. On the other side, Rider's Stephanie Lombardo responded, serving for five straight points to pull the Broncs within one, 6-5. In a game that featured six ties and multiple lead changes, Lafayette was able to pull ahead late in the contest, 26-23, behind three service points from sophomore Karla Barbiche. During the stretch, Lafayette capitalized on three straight Rider errors. As Lafayette was able to hold off Rider, Donohue ended the game with her fourth kill of the session.
Lafayette used a similar formula to begin the deciding game five, as the team jumped ahead to an early 4-1 lead. In a game that took less than ten minutes, Lafayette was able to maintain its momentum and walk away with the match. Rider got within five, 10-5, midway through, but the Leopards outscored the Broncs 5-2 down the stretch to take the match.
Lafayette hit .283 on the night, while holding Rider to a .188 hitting percentage. The Leopards also drilled down 64 kills, led by junior Veronica Canto-Ponce with 18 kills to go with a team-high 21 digs. Herchenroder and junior Shannon Fisher followed up with 13 kills apiece, while Donohue notched 10.
Lafayette improved to 10-5 with the win, while Rider fell to 5-10.
The Leopards hit the road to begin a five-game stretch away from Kirby Sports Center, beginning Friday, Sept. 30 as the team takes on Navy at 7 p.m.
