IPFW Mastodons Volleyball Team Wins Summit Opener in Dramatic Fashion
Fort Wayne, IN – The IPFW Mastodons won their 2010 Summit League opener in dramatic fashion on Friday evening, topping the Grizzlies of Oakland in five sets (21-25, 27-25, 19-25, 25-23, 15-10).
The Mastodons have now won the last 17 meetings between the two squads, with the last Oakland in the series win coming on September 11, 1993.
Stephanie Lamberti had a match-high 18 kills for the Mastodons, as Maya Schlindwein added 17 in the winning effort. Tessa McGill led five ‘Dons in double figure digs with 25, as Taryn Parker had six blocks and eight kills.
The teams traded points back and forth, as IPFW took an 8-7 lead before the Grizzlies scored five straight points to take a four-point, 12-8 lead. The lead grew to as many as five at 15-10 before IPFW started to claw its way back in, cutting the deficit to as few as one at 19-18 before the visitors scored six of the final nine points to take the opening set 25-21.
Oakland took a lead early in the second set, and never let it go until a 4-0 IPFW run, including a kill by Haley Emenhiser and a block by Parker, that pushed the Mastodons ahead 19-16. The Grizzlies quickly answered back with a 4-0 run to re-take the lead at 20-19. The back-and-forth began again, with the teams evening the scores at 21, 22, 23, 24, and 25, the latter setting the stage for a 2-0 IPFW run on a Lamberti kill and an attack error, knotting the score at one apiece.
The Golden Grizzlies dominated early in the third let, leading 10-3, as the Mastodons burned through both of their timeouts during that stretch. The Mastodons kept chipping away at the large margin, which grew to as many as eight, and eventually knocked the deficit to two at 19-17 which forced the Grizzlies into their second and final timeout of the set. The visitors used the break to regroup, and scored the next four points to cruise to a 25-19 third set win.
The Mastodons found themselves behind in the fourth set, and trailed by four at 9-5 before three straight Mastodon points, the first on a kill by Schlindwein and the last two on McGill service aces, dropped the Grizzly lead 9-8. The ‘Dons took their first lead at 11-10 before Oakland went on a minor run to lead by three at 17-14. An IPFW timeout gave the squad the time to regroup and score four straight to lead 18-17. The Mastodons wouldn’t trail again the rest of the way, as the squad scored the final two points of the set on a pair of Megan Steenhuysen kills, sending the match into a fifth and final set.
IPFW fell into a 4-0 hole to start the fifth set as, and lead 6-2 as the Grizzlies looked to take control and snap the Mastodon win streak in the series. The feisty Mastodon team would not go quietly into the September night, as the team rattled off runs of 3-0, and 2-0 to tie the score at eight apiece.
With the match tied at nine, IPFW scored four straight points on a Parker ace, a pair of Lamberti kills, and a bad set by the Oakland setter, as the Grizzlies were unable to stop the IPFW momentum despite using their two timeouts for the frame. Leading 13-9, Oakland picked up their final point of the match on a kill by Jenna Lange, but Lamberti’s final kill of the match sent the ‘Dons to match point, where Alli Hook knocked down a Lange kill attempt for the deciding points in the contest.
Steenhuysen picked up career-highs in assists (54), and kills (5), en route to picking up her second double-double of the season by adding 10 digs. Parker and Emenhiser each missed double figure kills by a pair, with Lamberti picking up her first double-double of the season and second of her career by adding 13 digs. Schlindwein also added a double-double with 10 digs, the second of the season and ninth in the career of the senior. Freshman Jen Milligan was the final Mastodon with double figure digs with 10, her third time this season reaching double figures in the category.
Oakland was led by Audrey Wilson who had 14 kills as Allison Bell and Lange each had 10 kills in the loss. Brittany Holbrook nearly had a double-double with eight kills and a match-high nine blocks, with Ashley Nevelle dishing out 45 assists and picking up 13 digs.
The Mastodons take to the road to compete in the Bowling Green Best Western Falcon Plaza Invitational, where they will face off against the Falcons of Bowling Green at 11:30 AM, and then the Cornell Big Red at 4:30 PM at Anderson Arena in Bowling Green, Ohio.
~Dons~
