Sept. 29, 2007
Box Score
WASHINGTON - The American University volleyball
team won a nail-biter Friday night, going on the road to beat Navy,
3-2. The win moves AU to 3-0 in the Patriot League this season and
extends its conference winning streak to 27 matches dating back two
years.
Despite struggling on the night, American escaped Annapolis,
Md., with its unblemished league record intact. The five game
scores for the match were 28-30, 30-14, 33-31, 20-30, 15-11. Rubena Sukaj
(Tirana, Albania/Asim Vokshi), the defending PL and East Coast
Athletic Conference Player of the Week, recorded her sixth
double-double of the season with a match high 26 kills and 12 digs.
Ivana
Cebakova (Brno, Czech Republic/Ludvika Danka) tallied 23 digs
in the win. Christina Nash
(Princeton, Fla./Coral Reef) and Tara Stradling
(Woodbine, Md./Glenelg) split time at the setter position and each
recorded over 20 assists, with 25 and 22, respectively.
American failed to hit above .200 in any of the match's first
four games but was able to capitalize on the Midshipmen's mistakes
when most necessary. After losing the first game, the Eagles came
back to take game two, 30-14. The Mids committed 12 errors in the
frame and AU needed just eight kills for the victory.
In game three, the two teams fought tooth and nail until the
Eagles earned game point at 33-31. American notched 17 kills in the
game led by Sukaj's 10 off 19 attempts. Claire Recht (Danby,
Ore./La Salle) blocked two Navy attacks and added two kills of her
own and Nash tallied 13 assists.
Navy evened the match score at 2-2 with a game four victory and
forced a fifth game. It was all AU in the stanza, though, as it hit
a match-high .286 with zero errors. The Eagles leaned heavily on
Sukaj in the game as she attempted nine of the team's 21 attacks,
connecting on four.
The Eagles have the rest of the weekend off and don't return to
the court again until next Friday, Oct. 5, when they welcome
Colgate University into Bender Arena at, 7 p.m., for the first of
two home matches. The following day, Saturday, Oct. 6, Bucknell
visits AU for a 4 p.m. match. American has not lost at home this
season and will look to extend its current unbeaten streak of
seven.
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