Thursday, September 18, 2008

Army defeats Syracuse, Clark named tournament co-MVP

Courtesy photo
Black Knights senior Jamie Clark was named the co-MVP in the Big Orange Tournament at Syracuse University.

Senior co-captain Jamie Clark was named co-Most Valuable Player as the Army volleyball team completed an unblemished weekend with a 3-0 win over Syracuse at the Big Orange Tournament Sept. 14.

Clark and Ohio University’s Ellen Herman shared the tournament’s MVP award, while senior right side hitter Briana Stremick made the all-tournament team.

Clark hit for a .500 percentage (36 kills, six errors, 60 attempts) for the tournament, while adding seven blocks to earn MVP honors.
Stremick averaged 3.50 kills per set, while totaling six service aces and eight total blocks en route to all-tournament team status.

The Black Knights handled the Orange in the first two sets, posting 25-18 and 25-15 victories, respectively. Syracuse (4-7) then gave Army (8-1) all it could handle before the Black Knights squeaked out a 25-23 third-set win.

Three Black Knight hitters topped the double-figure plateau for kills, led by Stremick’s 12. Clark and senior co-captain Elizabeth Lazzari posted 11 and 10 kills, respectively. Lazzari completed her second double-double of the season with 10 digs, while junior libero Shara Hoffman anchored the Army defense with a match-high 12 digs. Junior setter Maureen Bannon led all players with 44 assists to go with her six digs.

Junior outside hitter Rachel Dunn totaled eight kills and did not commit a single error to lead Army with a .444 hitting percentage. The Black Knights hit for a .272 (48 kills, 17 errors, 114 attempts) attack percentage. Army held Syracuse to a .102 (27 kills, 17 errors, 98
attempts) mark.

The Orange kept things tight through the midway point of the first set before Army was able to take over. With the score tied at 13-all, the Black Knights put some distance between themselves and the Orange with a 4-0 run highlighted by consecutive Breinling kills and a Stremick service ace. From the 13-13 tie, Army went on to outscore Syracuse by a 12-5 margin, including three-straight kills to cap the set.

Army took a 9-5 lead to open the second set and went on to hold at least a two-point advantage from there out. The Orange took advantage of an Army error to cut the deficit to 9-7, but the Black Knights scored nine of the next 13 points to expand their lead to 18-11 on back-to-back kills from Clark and Lazzari. The final 10-point margin, 25-15, equaled the largest of the set.

Things would not be so easy for the Black Knights to close out the match, as the team trailed throughout much of the third set. Syracuse led by as many as five points, but Army was able to mount a comeback late in the session. Trailing 21-17, the Black Knights out-scored Syracuse by an 8-2 margin to seal the match. Lazzari and Dunn each tallied a pair of kills during the pivotal Army run.

Army’s sweep was its seventh of the season. The Black Knights are now 4-12 all-time against Syracuse.