Printer-Friendly Format

  E-mail this article

Nov. 24, 2007

Box Score

MILWAUKEE - The Marquette volleyball team wrapped up its 2007 season with a hard-earned 3-2 (26-30, 38-36, 30-24, 29-31, 17-15) win over South Dakota State. MU finishes the 2007 season going 2-0 over the weekend to improve its record to 10-16 overall.

Marquette was led by junior Ashlee Fisher who slammed a career-high 27 kills, hitting a .388 clip. Senior Katie Weidner also notched a career-high, dishing out 85 assists and collecting 16 digs. Senior Kimberley Todd finished strong with a double-double on a season-high 29 kills and 12 digs. Sophomore Hailey Viola collected a career-high 26 digs, while freshman Rabbecka Gonyo, senior Tiffany Helmbrecht and senior Jenn Brown also hit double-figure kills with 14, 12 and 11 respectively.

"I thought the underclassmen, Ashlee Fisher and Rabbecka Gonyo worked really hard to help get the seniors a last home win," assistant coach Erica Heisser said. "The four seniors also stepped up to go out on top. I'm proud of how hard the girl's battled in the close games and it was great to finish out a game five."

MU fell behind 11-8 in the beginning of the first game, but pushed back to tie the score at 12, following a kill from Tiffany Helmbrecht. Trailing 19-17, the Golden Eagles took a breather as SDSU called a timeout. Following the break, Marquette pushed within two points at 20-18, but remained behind. The Golden Eagles called timeout trailing 23-20, and pushed to within two following the break. SDSU served for gamepoint at 29-24, but would need another try after Todd slammed a kill. SDSU took game one, 30-26. Fisher hit seven kills in the stanza, on a .417 clip.

The Golden Eagles opened game two with a 5-2 lead, but SDSU was able to tie the score at six. MU scored three unanswered for the 9-6 advantage, and continued to lead 12-10. SDSU pushed to take a 15-14 lead, and forced MU into a timeout at 18-16. Trailing 25-24, Marquette went to the side as SDSU used a timeout. MU grabbed a lead at 28-25 following an error from the Jackrabbits, and served for gamepoint at 29-27, but after an error, needed another attempt. SDSU tied the score at 29, but Todd slammed a kill for the 30-29 lead. Tied again at 30, SDSU took a 31-30 lead to serve for game point, but Fisher stalled the attempt after a kill. MU took the second game after going point-for-point with SDSU, 38-36. Fisher connected on eight kills, for a .583 hitting percentage in the stanza.

Tied 14-14 in the third frame, MU fell behind following a kill from SDSU, but was able to tie again at 15 apiece. SDSU took its first lead at 18-16 on an ace, but MU went on a 3-1 run to tie the game at 19. The Golden Eagles took control at 23-22, and following a service ace from Angst, they forced SDSU to the side, holding a 24-22 advantage. MU served for game point at 29-24 and secured the victory, 30-24 following an error from the Jackrabbits. Fisher and Jenn Brown each slammed six kills in the third game.

SDSU opened with a 9-5 lead in the fourth game, and increased to 14-10 following a kill. MU used its first timeout following an error, and went to the side trailing 17-10. The Golden Eagles mounted a comeback on a 9-3 run to pull within 20-19. MU tied the score at 28 following a service ace from Weidner, but SDSU served for gamepoint at 29-28. An error from the Jackrabbits kept MU alive, but they pushed to 30-29 after a kill. SDSU forced a fifth game with the 31-29 victory. Todd exploded for eight kills in the game.

In the fifth and final game, MU took a quick 4-2 lead, but SDSU tied following two unanswered. The teams switched sides after MU hit eight points first, but SDSU tied the score at eight apiece following a kill. The Golden Eagles scored two consecutive to send SDSU into a timeout. After the break the teams tied at 10, with SDSU taking a quick 11-10 lead. The Jackrabbits used their last timeout, trailing 13-11, and was able to tie the score at 13 after the break. SDSU served for match point at 14-13, but MU came back to tie. MU served for matchpoint at 16-15 and took the 17-15 victory.