Final Stats

LEWISBURG, Pa. â€"â€" Tara Dotzauer's (Jr., Raleigh, N.C.) 13 kills in the last three sets helped spark the Navy volleyball team to a four-set victory over Bucknell Friday night at Davis Gym in Lewisburg, Pa. The Mids (16-5, 6-3 Patriot League) came away with a 21-25, 25-21, 25-18, 25-19 victory over the Bison (4-17, 2-7) to notch their fifth win in a row.

"This was the type of match we anticipated having," said Navy head coach Larry Bock. "Navy and Bucknell traditionally play close, point-for-point matches against one another (the four matches played between the teams in the 2014 and '15 seasons went five sets), and this was another one. Bucknell also has played every team in the league tough. They were really ready for us this evening, so a lot of credit goes to them for how well they played."

The Bison took an early 7-3 lead on the Mids in the first set, and maintained a lead of about that margin on their way to taking a 17-13 lead. Navy promptly ran off the next four points to tie the score, but Bucknell answered with a 5-0 run of its own to take a 22-17 lead on its way to winning the frame.

Navy had 14 kills in the first set and held Bucknell to just 10, but the Bison outhit the Mids .143-.067 thanks to their holding a 5-0 edge in blocks.

The Mids were the team to take a slim lead in the early part of the second set. Navy used a 7-0 run to take a 13-6 lead, but that cushion soon was sliced down to one point at 16-15. Setter Patricia Mattingly (So., New Albany, Ind.) recorded a kill to double the lead, then the tandem of Shelby McCool (Jr., Eugene, Ore.) and Katie Patrick (So., Aurora, Colo.) combined for a block to boost the Mids to an 18-15 lead. The teams would exchange the next two points, which allowed Navy to take a 19-16 lead. Bucknell responded by scoring the ensuing four points to regain the lead at 20-19, which led to Bock calling for the first of his two available timeouts.

McCool dropped in a kill coming out of the break to tie the score, then Patrick and Maggie Phillips (Jr., Leesburg, Va.) gave the Mids the lead when they combined for a block. Phillips posted a kill on the next point to make the score 22-20 and result in a Bucknell timeout. A Bison block after the stoppage in play cut the lead in half, but consecutive kills by Patrick, Dotzauer and Dotzauer again allowed the Mids to tie the match at one set apiece.

Neither team would hold a lead of any significance for the majority of the third set. A 3-0 run in the middle of the frame gave Navy a 16-14 lead, which soon became a 19-16 advantage. After a kill by Bucknell, a kill by Dotzauer started a 4-0 spurt that boosted Navy out to a 23-17 lead. The Bison posted a kill after a timeout, but the Mids tallied the next two points to take a 2-1 lead.

Bucknell scored three of the first four points of the fourth set and grew its advantage out to as many as eight points at 14-6. Navy answered by scoring the next six points to make the score 14-12, but the Mids soon found themselves trailing by four points at 17-13. The teams successfully sided out the next two points to make the score 18-14, then a kill by McCool gave the serve back to the Mids with them trailing 18-15. Gabriela Martin (So., Columbus, Ohio) stepped to the service line and immediately recorded a pair of aces. McCool followed with a kill to tie the score, then Patrick gave the Mids a 19-18 lead on a kill. That led to a Bucknell timeout.

The Bison scored on a kill after the break to tie the frame, but gave the point and the lead back to the Mids on a bad set. Mattingly dropped back to serve and she would eventually set Dotzauer for a kill to give Navy a 21-19 lead. It quickly became a 22-19 advantage when Mattingly recorded an ace, and then 23-19 when she fed Dotzauer for a kill. Navy reached match point on a Bucknell attack error, then Mattingly set Dotzauer for a kill to conclude the nearly two-hour match.

"Bucknell was surgical against us with their blocking and digging in the first set," said Bock. "Our players did a good job afterward of going to our change-up when the fastball wasn't working. Tipping, dumping, hitting off speed; we did a good job of shot making. Being able to make those adjustments is the sign of a more seasoned team."

Navy totaled 46 kills over the last three sets while limiting Bucknell to just 27 kills. The Mids held sizeable hitting percentage advantages over the Bison during that span, and ended the night holding a .173-.135 lead. Navy also somewhat mitigated the Bucknell block in the last three sets while starting to get its own going. The Bison totaled eight blocks in the last three sets to five for the Mids.

"We had a lot of people make contributions to help us get this win," said Bock. "Katie was the glue that held us all together from start to finish. Shelby played a great, smart game. And we wouldn't have won it without Tara. She provided some adrenaline when it was really needed."

Dotzauer's 13 kills are the most she has recorded in a four-set match in her career, and she fell just a few kills shy of tying her overall career high of 16 that was set in a five-set match last year. She also hit .296 on the night. Patrick tallied 11 kills and no errors on 23 swings for a .478 hitting percentage while also adding three blocks. McCool just missed a double-double as she finished with nine kills and 11 digs, while Phillips added eight kills and a pair of blocks.

Defensively, Sydney Shearn (So., Louisville, Ky.) gathered in 25 digs to go along with three aces, and Mattingly â€"â€" who dished out 45 assists â€"â€" grabbed 14 digs as did Olivia Kluger (Jr., Carmel, Ind.).

Navy will remain on the road for a Saturday afternoon match at Lehigh. The Mountain Hawks are tied with Army West Point for third place in the Patriot League standings (both at 7-3), with the Mids in fifth place one-half game in back of both teams.