Army West Point Athletics
Army West Point
17-9,11-6Patriot
#6 Navy
13-13,9-8Patriot
Volleyball Falls to Navy in the Patriot League Quarterfinals
November 16, 2021 | Volleyball
| MATCH 26 | |
| SCORE | Navy 3, Army 0 |
| RECORDS | Army (17-9, 11-5) | Navy (13-13, 8-8) |
| LOCATION | Gillis Field House |
WEST POINT, N.Y. – Army West Point volleyball's (17-9, 11-5) season ended on Tuesday night at Gillis Field House as the Black Knights fell to Navy (13-13, 8-8) in three sets in the Patriot League Quarterfinals.
Army started the match strong, but errors began to get the best of the Cadets allowing to the Midshipmen to claim the match to advance to the Patriot League Semifinals. Paige Fixemer led Army with 10 kills and seven block assists. Allanah Cutler and Savannah Bray each recorded nine kills for the Black Knights. Sayler Butters helped Army on the defensive end recording 15 digs along with two service aces.
How It Happened
The teams were evenly matched from the start, trading points and errors. Navy took advantage of Army's errors to reach 15 points (15-12). After the media timeout, Cutler and Bray each threw down kills to get Army within one of Navy. A few points later, Fixemer slammed the ball down to ignite a 5-0 scoring run for the Black Knights (19-16). Army kept its momentum going to reach set point first, 24-22. Navy's offense found its groove late in the match to fight back and tie things up (24-24). The Cadets battled but were unable to keep their composer making errors that pushed Navy to the 28-26 win. Fixemer and Bray each finished with four kills while Fixemer added on four block assists as well.
Army came out hot at the start of set two but quickly fell into a slump making errors that gave Navy the advantage. Fixemer and Bray recorded two consecutive block assists to cut the Midshipmen's lead to 13-11. Army had trouble stopping Navy's offense, letting the Midshipmen reach 20 points first (20-15). Cutler helped shift the momentum with a kill that sparked a 3-0 scoring run for the Cadets. (20-18). The Black Knights battles but ultimately dropped the set 25-21 to Navy. Cutler led Army with six kills on a .417 hitting clip while Bray recorded three kills and two block assists.
The Black Knights had control of the third set in the beginning, leading 7-3 at the first timeout. Army's offense began to lose steam making errors that gave Navy the 12-10 advantage. The Cadets tried to fight back but Navy's offense had found its groove to lead 19-15 at the third timeout. Attacking errors continued to get the best of Army allowing Navy to win the set 25-18 claiming the match 3-0.
In head coach Alma Kovaci Lee 15th season at the helm, the team was one of the first to clinch a spot in the Patriot League Tournament, claiming a win over every team in the league at least once this season. Kovaci Lee's team will graduate three seniors: Emmy Barnhorst, Danielle Wortman, and Cate Buckingham. All of three contributed to the success of this year's team.
Coach's Corner
"I am proud of our team's success this season. All teams in the league were very competitive this season, anyone can win at any given time. That is great for this league. We are proud of our young team's success this season. Looking forward to getting better individually and as a team this upcoming spring." - Head coach Alma Kovaci Lee
Inside the Box Score
- Fixemer finished 14 matches with double-digit kills.
- Army finished the match with 18 blocks.
For complete coverage of Army West Point women's volleyball, follow the Black Knights on Twitter and Instagram at @ArmyWP_VB and online at www.goarmywestpoint.com.
