LANCASTER, Pa. – Junior
Zanze Kuba-McCoy (Somerville, N.J./Somerville) pounded down 17 kills and sophomore
Chelsea O'Leary (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Cumberland Valley) put up 19 digs to lead Gettysburg College past Franklin & Marshall College in three sets in the first round of the Centennial Conference Championship inside the Mayser Center on Wednesday night.
Scores
| Gettysburg (15-8) |
25 |
25 |
25 |
| Franklin & Marshall (15-10) |
22 |
10 |
20 |
Gettysburg's Top Performers
F&M's Top Performers
- Allison Franke: 10 Kills, 5 Digs
- Sydney Levins: 9 Kills
- Annmarie Earley: 22 Assists, 5 Digs
- Carly Bozzo: 18 Digs
Match Summery
- First Set: Franklin & Marshall used the home court to its advantage early by leaping out to a 10-4 lead. Bayer served up a pair of aces as part of a 5-0 spurt by Gettysburg, but the Diplomats tallied six of the next seven points to jump ahead 16-10. The Bullets steadily chipped away at the lead with another five-point surge putting the visitors in front 19-18. F&M managed to slink back in front 22-21, but a big kill by Kuba-McCoy set Gettysburg up for a set-clinching 4-0 run.
- Second Set: Gettysburg completely dominated the second set, hitting .355 in the frame and seemingly getting every bounce to go its way. In the blink of an eye, the Bullets led 6-2 following an ace by Nasir and the lead hit double-figures at 18-8 on a monster block by Bayer and freshman Cat Holtz (Chester, N.J./West Morris Mendham). After a point by F&M, the Bullets rattled off the final three points with back-to-back kills by Horowitz sealing the win.
- Third Set: Two opening kills by Kuba-McCoy kicked off a 5-0 run to open the third set. The Diplomats would not go away quietly, clawing back into the contest each time the Bullets seemed to be on the verge of jetting away. Franke bookended a four-point run with kills which tied the match 8-8. A service error by F&M and back-to-back blocks by Gettysburg stopped the run and the visitors would maintain at least a two-point cushion the rest of the match. After the Diplomats cut the deficit to 19-15, the Bullets ran off the next five points to set up match point. The hosts stayed alive with four consecutive points before Holtz sealed the victory with a cross-court kill on the left line.
By the Numbers
- Gettysburg led in kills (33), aces (6-3), blocks (6-1), and digs (50-48). With an attack percentage of .225, the Bullets hit over .200 for the sixth time in the last seven matches.
- Kuba-McCoy recorded her 19th contest with double-figure kills. The junior outside hitter has posted at least 15 kills in 12 matches. She also eclipsed 500 career kills.
- Bayer posted her 10th consecutive contest with three or more blocks. She currently leads the Centennial Conference in blocking with 1.04 per set.
- In two matches against F&M this season, O'Leary put up a whopping 60 digs. In a five-set affair in late September, the sophomore libero finished just two digs shy of the program record with 41.
Where the Series Stands Now
Gettysburg ended a five-match losing streak to Franklin & Marshall and improved its lead in the all-time series to 39-22. The Bullets moved to 8-0 against the Diplomats in the Centennial Conference Tournament.
Looking Ahead
Gettysburg draws top-ranked and defending national champion Johns Hopkins University (27-0) in the CC semifinals on Saturday, Nov. 6, at 1 p.m. The other semifinal pits Haverford College (22-4) against Swarthmore College (13-7) at 3:30, with the two semifinal winners meeting in Sunday's championship match.
