Volleyball Comes Back to Down William & Mary

Saturday, September 5

West Point, NY

7 PM

Army West Point

3-2

William & Mary

2-3

William and Mary

Army

Volleyball Comes Back to Down William & Mary

September 05, 2015 | Volleyball

Box Score

WEST POINT, N.Y. – Trailing 12-7 in the fifth set, the Army West Point volleyball team scored eight of the final nine points to knock off William & Mary on Saturday night in the Black Knights Invitational at Christl Arena.

Sophomores Jaden Pickell, Carolyn Bockrath and Vanessa Wesley each posted double-digit kill performances with 19, 14 and 10, respectively, while senior Vanessa Edwards recorded a double-double with 52 assists and 15 digs. Wesley and Olivia Fairfield each contributed seven blocks defensively. Shannel Chong chipped in a team-high three aces, 13 digs and five assists.

"I thought it was a very competitive match," head coach Alma Kovaci said. "William & Mary did a very good job, but I loved how hard our team worked and they never gave up the whole time. I'm very proud of everyone, because mathematically it was almost over and our girls refused to lose."

Army (3-2) started the match by scoring four of the first five points in the opening set after Wesley set the tone with a thunderous spike for the game's first point. The lead was 8-4 following another kill by Wesley, but the Tribe (2-3) scored five straight points to take their first lead at 9-8.

The Black Knights responded and held a 15-13 lead following a Bockrath rejection and a kill from Pickell off the left side. The seesaw battle ensued with four consecutive tallies by the Tribe (17-15), prior to Pickell finding a soft spot in the Tribe defense to trim the deficit to a point.

The two sides alternated the next four points before a kill by Sydney Biniak gave William & Mary a 20-18 edge. Army used its first timeout at that point, but the visitors came out of the stoppage with an ace by Dessi Koleva and another Biniak kill. Army took another timeout down 22-18 and came back with three in a row to pull within a point (22-19), forcing William & Mary to use one of its two remaining timeouts. The Tribe held on for the 25-21 win with three of their own to close the set.

Like the first, the second set was tightly contested and the two sides were deadlocked at 12-12. Army reeled off five of the next six points and forced William & Mary to use a timeout with the score 17-13. Each side scored out of the break and Bockrath's block extended the cushion to five at 19-14. An error by the Tribe, plus an ace by Shannel Chong, put the set out of reach at 21-14. The Black Knights finished the second set, 25-17, and tied the match at a game apiece.

William & Mary opened the third set by scoring seven of the first 10 points and Army used a quick timeout. Army answered with a 10-2 run that featured five straight points after Amber Clay took the serving position. The Tribe tried to stop the bleeding with a timeout, but Wesley continued the stretch with two of Army's next three points as the lead increased to 16-9. Wesley and Pickell combined on a block to cap the run at 14-2. The Tribe got as close as three points (24-41), but Army came away with the 25-21 third-set victory.

Midway through the fourth set, William & Mary held a slim 13-12 edge after Fairfield and Wesley combined for a successful block. Moments later, the duo combined again and the Black Knights went in front and secured a 15-13 lead after four consecutive tallies.

Out of a William & Mary timeout, the Tribe scored three straight and the two sides reached a stalemate at 16-16.

Back-to-back blocks by Bockrath and Fairfield briefly put Army up two, but a kill by Mallory Brickerd and Austyn Ames' ace tied it at 18-18. The next 10 points were split evenly (23-23), prior to kill by Heather Pippus that gave the visitors a chance to level the match. Carolyn Albright took advantage of the opportunity and her kill ended the set at 25-23.

The visitors got a head start in the race to 15 by scoring four of the first five points. The 4-1 deficit halted the action for an Army timeout, which worked in the Black Knights' favor. A service error, plus consecutive Bockrath kills made it 4-4. The game was tied at 6-6, but four in-a-row had William & Mary looking toward the finish line at 10-6. An attack error by Army pushed the visitors lead to 11-6, but Pickell got one back with a kill.

Service errors by each side plus an attack error by the Tribe pulled Army within three at 12-9. Another error cut it to 12-10, before Koleva and Pickell traded kills. Pickell hammered home another spike as Army drew within one (13-12), then Edwards set up Bockrath to tie the score at 13-13. Pickell got the Black Knights to a set point with another kill, and Edwards set her up for the winner to help Army complete the comeback.

The tournament concludes on Sunday when Army hosts Cornell at 1 p.m. The Big Red defeated Iona (3-0) and William & Mary (3-2) and Army topped Iona (3-0). Sunday's match at Christl Arena will be broadcast on the Patriot League Network.