ANNAPOLIS, Md. -- Twin sisters Jamie Llewellyn and Jordan Llewellyn combined for 13 kills, nine digs and four aces in the last two sets as the Navy volleyball team rallied to defeat Bucknell in five sets, Friday night at the Wesley A. Brown Field House in Annapolis.  The Mids (11-2, 3-1) edged the Bison (6-8, 2-3), 25-20, 21-25, 24-26, 25-18, 15-8, in a match lasting over two and one-half hours.

The teams have now played five-set matches in three-straight meetings.  In each instance, the team that held a 2-1 lead in sets ended up losing the match.

"Bucknell came ready to compete today," said Navy head coach Paco Labrador, "and in the middle of the match we lost the consistency required to win at this level.  I'm proud of the refocus in set four and the finish in set five."

Set One
Bucknell had a great start to the match as it jumped out to a 7-2 lead.  Navy trailed by four points at 12-8 but tied the frame at 13-13.  The Mids were able to take a two-point lead at 17-15, and from there the teams traded sideouts until an attack error by the Bison stretched the Navy cushion to three points at 20-17.  The lead hovered between two and three points until a Navy block followed by a kill from the Mids made the score 24-19.  Two more sideouts and Navy had won the first set.

Neither team registered a high hitting percentage in the first set as Navy hit .154 and held Bucknell to a mark of .108.  Jordan Llewellyn accounted for nearly half of Navy's 15 kills in the set as she tallied seven kills on 11 swings.

Set Two
The Bison scored the opening three points of the second set and held the lead until the Mids took a 14-13 advantage.  The score would be tied at 15-15 when the Bison notched the next seven points to build a 22-15 advantage.  Bucknell soon reached set point with a 24-19 lead.  Navy was able to make things interesting as it pulled to within three points at 24-21 before a Bison kill closed play in the stanza.

Bucknell outhit Navy in the set, .206-.163, despite the Mids holding a 14-12 lead in kills.

Set Three
Navy was the team to put together a good start to the third set as it took a 6-1 lead.  A Bucknell timeout stemmed the momentum, however, and allowed the Bison to tie the score at 9-9.  The score would be tied again at 10, 11, 13, 15, 16 and 17.  Navy placed the next two points in the scoreboard to take a 19-17 lead, but Bucknell tied the score again at 19-19.  The teams traded points through 21-21 when the Bison took a 22-21 lead.  Two Navy points followed to give Navy a 23-22 lead, but a service error tied the score at 23-23.

The Mids committed an attack error on the next point, but staved off one set point against them with a kill from Jordan Llewellyn that made it a 24-24 set.  A Navy attack error ensued, and a Bucknell kill gave the Mids the 2-1 advantage in sets.

Neither team hit over .100 in the set as the Mids registered a .078 mark and the Bison posted a .083 effort in the set.

Set Four
Navy held a few brief three-point leads in the opening third of the fourth set, but Bucknell tied the frame at 14-14.  It was a 16-15 Navy lead until a kill by Jamie Llewellyn was followed by an ace from Jordan Llewellyn that made the score 18-15 and resulted in a Bucknell timeout.  A kill by the Bison shaved one point off of the margin, but a kill from Anna Klemeyer and a kill from Jordan Llewellyn pushed the lead to 20-16.  Maggie Bodman and Ashley Warren combined for a block to stretch the advantage to five points at 21-16.  

The Bison were able to made it a three-point difference at 21-18, but Navy registered the next four points to force a fifth set.

The Llewellyn twins posted a combined 10 kills and two errors on 24 attempts in the set, with Jordan adding three aces.

Set Five
For the fourth time in the match, Bucknell was the team to have a good start.  The Bison quickly rattled off the first three points and that forced Labrador into calling a very early timeout.  The Mids tied the score at 5-5 and after a pair of sideouts kept the teams tied at 6-6, Navy tallied the next five points to build an 11-6 lead.

A kill by Jamie Llewellyn was followed by a kill from Averi Miller.  Klemeyer posted a solo block, which led to a Bucknell timeout with the score 9-6.  Back-to-back Bucknell attack errors allowed the Mids to take the five-point lead.

The Bison were only able to close to within as few as four points over the rest of the set.

Navy hit just .111 in the set (seven kills, four errors, 27 attempts), but held Bucknell to a (-).143 mark (three kills, six errors, 21 attempts).

Statistical Notes
Navy led Bucknell in kills, 64-46, hitting percentage, .158-.107, aces, 6-5, digs, 85-76, and blocks, 14-10.  Much of those cushions were built in sets four and five.

"Our blocking was really influential tonight," said Labrador.  "Jordan made some big time blocks and I think that rattled the Bucknell hitters."

Three Mids reached double figures in kills with Jordan Llewellyn leading the way with 17, Jamie Llewellyn adding 16 and Klemeyer posting 12 kills.  Bodman also finished one kill shy of double digits.  

Jamie Llewellyn and Hannah Hoover each grabbed 21 digs for the Mids.  Bodman had six blocks with Klemeyer and Jordan Llewellyn each finishing with four.  Jordan Llewellyn snared 14 digs and accounted for half of Navy's six aces, while Miller posted a double-double of her own with 54 assists and 12 digs.  Miller's assist on Klemeyer's kill to win the match was the 2,300th of her career.

"Anna continues to be our rock," said Labrador.  "She gets the job done both as an attacker and a blocker.

"I thought freshman Arleigh Hanson stepped in and made a big impact.  She's a really smart player and plays with a ton of poise."

Up Next
Navy will be back in the Wesley A. Brown Field House floor Saturday at 7:30 p.m. when the Mids play host to Lafayette.