ANNAPOLIS, Md. --
Ellen Gundlach recorded a career-best 22 kills to help the Navy volleyball team rally multiple times during a four-set victory over Lafayette, Friday night at the Wesley A. Brown Field House in Annapolis. The Mids (5-6, 3-0 Patriot League) defeated the Leopards (6-7, 0-3), 23-25, 25-23, 25-18, 25-22, to claim their third victory in as many matches.
"Ellen was incredible tonight," said Navy head coach
Paco Labrador. "She was 100 percent in the zone. I'm happy she found great connections tonight and carried us through the match.
"We knew Lafayette was a dangerous team. They run a diverse mix of offense and their blocking and defensive systems are tough to beat.
Set One
The score was tied at 11 when Navy seemingly found a good rhythm by taking a 17-13 lead. Lafayette called timeout and when play resumed the Leopards scored on an attack error by the Mids. That would be the first point in an 8-0 run by Lafayette that gave it a 21-17 advantage. The Mids closed to within two points at 22-20, then made it a one-point deficit at 23-22 on a Lafayette attack error. The Leopards answered with a kill to reach set point with a 24-22 lead. Gundlach cut the margin in half with a kill, but then was blocked on the next play to give Lafayette a 1-0 lead.
Set Two
The second set started very similar to the first in that the teams were tied at 11 and then Navy took a 17-13 lead. The Leopards started to replicate their efforts of the first set as they quickly made it a 17-16 score, and then tied the frame at 18-18. A Navy kill was followed by a service error (19-19), then a Navy attack error and back-to-back Lafayette kills gave the Leopards a 4-0 run and a 22-19 lead.
Grace Burgoyne and
Siena Morgan combined for a block (22-20), then
Isa Boyd registered an ace to make it a 22-21 score and lead to a Lafayette timeout being called. Gundlach tied the score at 22 when she tallied a kill, but Lafayette regained a 23-22 lead on a kill of its own. Boyd again found Gundlach for a kill to tie the score at 23, a Lafayette attack error took Navy to set point and Gundlach recorded her 11th kill of the set to tie the match at one set each.
Gundlach hit .769 in the frame as she had 11 kills and 1 error on 13 attempts. For comparison, Lafayette as a team had 10 kills in the set.
Set Three
The third set also would be tied at 11, then Navy used a 4-0 run to take a 19-13 lead. Lafayette was able to close to as few as three points at 20-17 and 21-18, but three-straight kills took the Mids to set point with a 24-18 lead.
Set Four
Lafayette jumped out to leads of 5-1 and 8-2 before Navy rallied and pulled to within one point at 10-9. The teams traded the ensuing few points, then Lafayette scored four points in a row to take an 18-12 lead. It soon became a 20-14 lead for the Leopards when the Mids started their rally.
A Lafayette attack error gave the next point to Navy and sent
Amara Chambers to the service line. A block by
Caroline Buffum and
Avery Maddux was followed by a kill from Buffum and an ace from Chambers. That made the score 20-18 and led to a Lafayette timeout. Burgoyne kept the run going with a kill (20-19), but that was followed by a Lafayette kill and an ace from the Leopards (22-19). Buffum responded with a kill (22-20), then a Lafayette attack error made it a 22-21 score. Gundlach tied the score at 22 with a kill, with an attack error by the Leopards giving Navy its first lead of the set at 23-22. Gundlach and Maddux promptly combined for a kill to take the Mids to match point. Maddux then recorded a block to complete a 6-0 run to close the match.
Statistical Summary
Navy finished with just four more kills than Lafayette, 52-48, but the Mids had only 24 attack errors in comparison to the 34 committed by the Leopards. That gave Navy a .188-.090 advantage in hitting percentage. Lafayette was slightly better at the service line with an 8-4 lead in aces and in blocking with a 10-8 edge, but Navy finished with 64 digs to the 55 snared by Lafayette.
"It wasn't a pretty match," said Labrador, "but the ability to grind out a win when things aren't flowing well is a skill, and I'm incredibly proud of the tenacity of this team."
Gundlach surpassed her previous career high of 16 kills with her 22 this evening. She also hit an impressive .545 as she had only 4 errors on her 33 attempts.
Farrah Eike recorded another double-double of 13 kills and 11 digs, Boyd just missed a double-double with 30 assists and 9 digs, Chambers grabbed 14 digs and Maddux finished with 5 blocks.
Up Next
Navy will play host to Bucknell Saturday at 4 p.m.
