Syracuse University
18-5, 7-1
Georgetown University
11-13, 1-7
Pu Wins 300th Match as SU Head Coach
10/18/2009 4:58:48 PM | Volleyball
SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Head coach Jing Pu collected his 300th Syracuse victory as the Orange (18 -5, 7-1) defeated Georgetown (11-13, 1-7), 3-1, on Sunday afternoon at Manley Field House. The win kept SU a perfect 9-0 at home on the season while extending its current win streak to seven matches.
A balanced Syracuse attack had eight players with at least one kill, senior middle blocker Sarah Morton and sophomore outside hitter Noemie Lefebvre led the way with 12 kills each. Senior outside hitter Kacie MacTavish ranked second on the team with seven kills while juniors Mindy Stanislovaitis and Hayley Todd chipped in four each. Freshman setter Laura Homann fed the all-around attack, dishing out 39 assists while also firing off a pair of service aces.
Defensively, Morton set the tone with 10 total blocks, marking her third kills-blocks double-double of the season, while Lefebvre chipped in four and MacTavish added a pair of solo rejections. MacTavish's 11 digs paced the back row defense while Lefebvre and senior libero Shanetha McLaurin each added 10.
The two teams played closely through the opening set, tied at 9-9 the Orange assembled a four-point run with a pair of kills from Morton and one from Lefebvre to go up, 13-9. Georgetown battled back from a four-point deficit toward the end of the set, tying the match at 20. A fight to the finish ensued, with the two teams tying on five more occasions, the last a 25-25, before SU scored the final two points to secure a 27-25 victory.
The back-and-forth play continued into the second set, with neither team taking a lead of more than two points. The teams tied 11 times before the Orange continued its late-set success, ending the set on a three-point run to win, 25-21.
Georgetown avoided the sweep with a 25-20 third-set win. With the set tied at 16 the Hoyas used a 4-1 run to take a 20-17 lead it would never relinquish, cutting the match deficit, 2-1.
Syracuse closed out the victory in decisive fashion in the fourth set. Tied at 9-9, a Georgetown attack error gave the Orange a narrow lead, 10-9, before junior defensive specialist Sarah Hayes broke the game open on a nine-point serving run, 19-9. SU maintained it lead for the entirety of the set, concreting a 3-1 match victory with a 25-16 fourth-set win.
The Orange travels to Wisconsin to visit Marquette on Saturday, October 24 at 3 p.m. before taking a break from league action to face Wisconsin-Green Bay on Sunday, October 25 at noon.
