Army West Point Athletics
Army West Point
Lafayette
Army Rolls Past Lafayette For Second League Victory
September 24, 2011 | Volleyball
Sept. 24, 2011
EASTON, Pa. - The Army volleyball team completed a 2-0 weekend with a sweep of Lafayette (25-13, 25-21, 25-21) on Saturday afternoon at Kirby Sports Center. The Black Knights improved to 2-0 in Patriot League play, thanks in large part to a match-high 17 kills from junior outside hitter Ariana Mankus.
"We were able to showcase our depth today with a lot of different players stepping into the rotation," said fifth-year head coach Alma Kovaci. "Hitting-wise, Ariana (Mankus), Molly (McDonald) and Margaux (Jarka) really made a difference for us today. We had our moments, but Mary (Vaccaro) did a great job running the offense and keeping us on track."
Mankus' 12 digs completed her ninth double-double (kills, digs) of the season. She was the only player to reach double-figure kills. Mankus hit for a blistering .469 percentage and committed just two errors all afternoon. Sophomore outside hitter Margaux Jarka hit .421 with eight kills and freshman middle blocker Molly McDonald registered a .422 percentage with six kills to pace the Black Knights' attack. Army (11-4, 2-0 PL) hit .276 for the match and amassed 47 kills compared to Lafayette's (7-7, 0-2 PL) 28 kills.
Freshman setter Mary Vaccaro recorded her seventh-straight double-double with a match-high 39 assists to go with 13 digs. Sophomore libero D.J. Phee led all players with 16 digs and anchored an Army defense that held Lafayette to a .070 hitting percentage.
After the score went back-and-forth to open the match, Army made its move when a Fabiola Castro kill broke an 8-8 tie, spawned a decisive 7-2 run and gave the Black Knights a 15-10 lead. Lafayette never recovered, as Army scored 10 of the final 13 points on its way to the most lopsided victory of the match.
The Black Knights scored the first three points of the second match and never trailed. Army's strong start resulted in an 11-6 lead after Castro teamed with sophomore Megan Wilton for a double-block midway through the action. The Leopards came back, however, pulling within 13-12 on a service ace. Mankus stopped the Leopard run with a kill and the Black Knights were able to stave off the Leopard rally down the stretch.
The third set opened with both teams coming out strong. A Castro service ace gave the Black Knights a comfortable 17-11 lead midway through the action, but again the Leopards would not go away. Army held a 24-16 lead but Lafayette scored five unanswered points to prolong the match. Coming out of a Kovaci timeout still sitting on match point, Jarka came through with a kill to complete the sweep.
Lafayette's Alexandra Russo paced the Leopards with seven kills, while Danielle Towslee finished with six kills to go with four total blocks.
Army returns to West Point as Patriot League play continues next weekend. The Black Knights face a pair of tough tests as defending champion American comes to Gillis Field House on Friday, Sept. 30, at 7 p.m. Army will then face rival Navy on Saturday, Oct. 1, at 7 p.m.
Match Notes: Both teams totaled seven blocks ... the entire match featured 12 ties and five lead changes ... Army held both opponents this weekend (Lehigh, Lafayette) to under a .100 hitting percentage ... Army improved to 39-4 all-time against Lafayette ... the Black Knights have won six of their last seven matches.
