Sept. 8, 2006

Navy-Providence Stats

Complete Box Score in PDF Format

Navy-La Salle Stats

Complete Box Score in PDF Format

ANNAPOLIS, Md. -- Sophomore outside hitter Jessie Sims (Etowah, N.C.) totaled 31 kills and 28 digs on the day to help the Navy volleyball team record a pair of three-game sweeps on the opening day of the Chesapeake Challenge, Friday in Macdonough Hall. The Midshipmen improved to 3-4 on the season with victories over Providence (30-19, 30-27, 30-23) and La Salle (31-29, 30-28, 30-28).

"I liked the fight we had in ourselves tonight," said Navy head coach Mike Schwob. "We faced two very spirited teams who forced us to earn everything out there. We had to rally from some sizeable deficits late in several of our games, but we were able to work hard and close them out."

The tournament now moves to the Loyola campus Saturday where Navy will conclude pool play at 9 a.m. against Youngstown State. The Penguins also defeated both the Friars and the Explorers Friday, which means the winner of the Navy-Youngstown State match will play at 7 p.m. in the title match of the tournament against the top-seeded team to come out of the Loyola bracket. The loser of the match will play at 5 p.m. in the third-place match.

Sims recorded a double-double of 15 kills and 11 digs, while also hitting .464, in helping Navy defeat Providence. The Navy offense totaled just a .200 attack percentage in the opening game of the match, but its defense held the Friars to a -.057 percentage as the Mids quickly opened up a 20-6 lead.

Game two was close throughout the frame, with the Mids seemingly breaking open the contest with a 5-0 run to take a 24-19 lead. The Friars would quickly answer with a run of their own and closed to within one point at 26-25. Navy, however, closed the game out with a 4-2 run.

Game three was a similar story as Navy used a 5-0 run to take a 23-18 advantage, but Providence again responded and closed to within one point at 23-22. Navy scored three-straight points to jump in front 26-22, then, after a Providence tally, ended the game and the with a 4-0 run.

Navy outhit Providence in the match, .228-.018, and totaled nine service aces while allowing only five aces for the Friars. The Mids also outblocked the Friars, 7-3.

The Mids started slow in their second match of the day, quickly falling behind La Salle in game one by scores of 10-4, 14-7 and 20-12 before eventually tied the game at 23-23. Nikki England (Jr., Colorado Springs, Colo.) then proceeded to take over on offense for the Mids. With the score tied at 25-25, she tallied back-to-back kills to give the Mids a two-point lead, then, after a point by La Salle, knocked down another kill. England would commit a service error to allow La Salle to cut the margin in half, then the Explorers tied the game at 28-28 on an ace from Jackie Cushman. Sims next tallied a kill to take the Mids to game point, but a kill by Amy McKeon tied the game at 29-29. Abbie Merkl (Fr., Upper Marlboro, Md.) recorded just one kill for Navy in the opening game, but it came during the next rally to give the Mids a 30-29 lead. Navy won the game when La Salle's serve receive attempt went back over the net allowing Sims to knock it down for a kill.

Game two saw Navy open up slim leads during the middle part of the frame, but La Salle soon found itself holding a 19-18 advantage. The Mids went on a small run to take a 24-22 lead, but the Explorers responded by scoring the next four points. The Mids went on a 4-0 run of their own to take a 28-26 lead, but La Salle again was able to tie the game at 28-28. Navy closed out the game with back-to-back kills from England and Sims.

The two teams played a see-saw game three, with neither squad able to take any sizeable advantage. The two teams were tied at 13-13 when Navy tried to break the frame open with a 7-1 to take a 20-14 advantage. That lead was short lived as the Explorers were able to tie the game at 24-24. Navy regained the lead and took a 27-25 lead, but La Salle promptly scored three-straight points to take a 28-27 advantage.

After the Mids tied the game on a La Salle hitting error, Aimee' Burns (Jr., Dallas, Texas) served up an ace to take the Mids to match point at 29-28. Her next serve was sent back over the net to Navy on an La Salle overpass, which Megan Boyd (Sr., Richmond, Va.) knocked down for a kill to end the contest.

Navy outhit La Salle in the match, .207-.125, as the Mids totaled 51 kills to just 34 for the Explorers. La Salle held the advantage in both service aces, 8-5, and in blocks, 8.5-5.5.

Sims tallied her second double-double of the day and her fifth in Navy's seven matches this season with 16 kills and 17 digs against La Salle. Her kill total in the contest set a new career-high for a three-game match. England hit .162 in the match, but knocked down 13 kills.

"Jessie and Nikki both played well tonight," said Schwob. "They were able to bail us out on offense at some key times in both matches. Another person who had some big plays for us was Abbie. The box score says she finished with five kills in the La Salle match, but I think almost every one of them came at a crucial time for us.

"As a team I was happy with our defense tonight. We still have a lot of work to do, but hopefully these matches have given us some momentum and confidence."