ANNAPOLIS, Md. –– The final week of the regular season for the Navy volleyball team begins with a Tuesday night match at Bucknell in Lewisburg, Pa.  The 7 p.m. contest in Davis Gym between the Mids (14-10, 9-4 Patriot League) and the Bison (14-12, 3-11) will be the third in a span of four days for Navy.
 
The Mids defeated the Bison, 25-16, 25-23, 25-19, Oct. 15 in Annapolis. 
 
"Bucknell plays really well in its home gym," said Navy head coach Paco Labrador. "They are still fighting for a playoff spot, so I expect them to come out ready to play from the first point.  We need to match that sense of urgency because we too have a lot we can accomplish if we have a successful last week of the season."
 
In that mid-October match, Navy broke open set one with an 8-1 run to build a 15-7 lead.  The Mids seemed to break away from the Bison in set two with an 8-3 start, but Bucknell eventually tied the frame at 16-16.  Navy slowly took a 23-19 lead only to see Bucknell pull to within one point at 23-22.  Three-straight sideouts gave the Mids the second set.
 
Navy began set three by taking leads of 3-1, 9-3 and 18-11 on its way to winning the set and the match.
 
The Mids were able to score on 40 of the 59 serves by the Bison (67%) and allowed Bucknell to score just 39 points on the 75 Navy serves (51%).  Navy also held advantages over Bucknell in kills (41-31), hitting percentage (.238-.106), aces (8-3), digs (45-39) and blocks (7-6).
 
Navy setter Paige Miles (Sr., Oklahoma City, Okla.) registered a double-double with 31 assists and 13 digs.  She also added five kills on eight attempts and three aces.
 
Leading all attackers in the match was Bucknell's Sophie Bullard with 11 kills.
 
Following Tuesday's match, the Mids will play host to Colgate on Friday night and Lafayette on Sunday afternoon to finish out the regular season.