KUTZTOWN, PA (November 9, 2010) – The Kutztown University volleyball team rallied early and took control late to defeat Shippensburg University, 3-1, in a spirited Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) quarterfinal at Keystone Arena Tuesday night. (BOXSCORE)
With the win, the Golden Bears (21-10) advance to Friday's PSAC semifinals against West top seed Clarion, a 3-0 winner over Gannon. The KU-Clarion match will start at 7:30 p.m. Also, Kutztown earned a measure of revenge and finished its last item on its 2010 “to-do” list by winning 25-23, 29-27, 20-25, 25-17. This will be Kutztown's first trip to the semifinals since 2007.
“I am very proud of my team's effort tonight,” Kutztown head volleyball coach John Gump said. “Before the match, we compared everything to last year and let the team know how it changed for the better. However, we put the Shippensburg result on the board from last year and put a question mark next to it. We told the team that this is the last thing that needs to be changed.”
Consider it done as the Golden Bears displayed all of the traits of the championship character that has carried them through a fun season. Kutztown made sure to enjoy a happy ending because it made plays when it needed to and never got flustered when it appeared as if Shippensburg would win one of the early games.
Lindsay Confer (Wingate, PA/Bald Eagle) led Kutztown with 12 kills. Cali Snell (York, PA/York Suburban) had nine kills while Cait Hess (Newark, DE/St. Mark's) and Erin Kissling (York, PA/Central York) contributed seven kills each for Kutztown. Snell also finished with six blocks. Katie Lutz (Greencastle, PA/Greencastle Antrim) was large and in charge with seven blocks. Dana Wright (Warminster, PA/Saint Basil Academy) distributed 20 assists for Kutztown. Jamie Celia (Douglassville, PA/Daniel Boone) led the way with 20 digs and Kissling added 15 digs.
Jill Edwards and Libby Wolffindin combined for 26 kills to lead Shippensburg (19-16).
“We are excited to be going to the semifinals,” Celia said. “We struggled a little bit with our serve receive and it caused us to struggle in other places at times, but we were able to pick each other up. It's definitely extra sweet to beat Shippensburg. We've had so much fun this season and I couldn't have asked for a better group of teammates to play with.”
The match turned in Kutztown's favor for good when Hess delivered a block that shook Keystone Arena to its core. Trailing, 5-2, in the fourth game and with the momentum on Shippensburg's side, the Golden Bears raised their game to another level with a breathtaking display of volleyball. By the time Kutztown's run ended, the Golden Bears enjoyed a 19-7 bulge.
“I think it just hit us that it was time to take control,” Wright said. “We all felt that it was the right time. We've been waiting for this game since the spring when we had to wake up at 6 a.m. This win feels good and I am really happy that we were able to win this match for our seniors and send them out winners for the last time here.”
Celia helped Kutztown keep control. Trailing, 23-19, in the second game, the Golden Bears dug deep and rallied before eventually claiming a 29-27 triumph that eased the tension in the third game.
Hess finished the victory with a beautiful kill. The Golden Bear players rushed onto the floor and embraced each other in victory hugs. Following the match, Gump was speechless for one of the few times.
“I don't what I can say about this match,” Gump said. “I didn't feel like we played well in the first two games, but we made plays when we had to. I thought in the third game we pressed and forced a lot of things. We were able to settle in the fourth game and had some huge blocks that turned the game for us.”
--KU--
