Wednesday, October 26, 2005

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (October 26, 2005) - Four Lady Bucs posted hitting percentages of .500 or better on Tuesday night, as the East Tennessee State volleyball team blanked High Point, 3-0, in Brooks Gym.  The Lady Bucs dominated the match from the start, winning 30-18, 30-20, and 30-11. 

The win was the eighth-straight at home for the Lady Bucs, who have won nine of ten contests while playing in Brooks Gym this season.  ETSU improves to 16-9 on the year, while the Panthers fall to .500, at 13-13.

"We really love playing at home in front of our crowd," said ETSU head coach Lindsey Devine.  "We really build momentum in our locker room and bring it onto the court.  I'm pleased with the win."

ETSU swung an impressive .430 for the match, including a .483 performance in game one, for its best hitting percentage of the season.  The Panthers were held to just .116 for the evening.  Sophomore Callie Kiselich (Colorado Springs, Colo.) and junior Sarah Buhr (Stockton, Calif.) led the way with 12 kills apiece, hitting .563, and .500, respectively.

Junior Crystal Palmer (Chico, Calif.) posted the highest hitting percentage of the night, swinging a match-best .583, with eight kills.  Junior Jennifer Sartor (Toronto, Ontario) also swung an even .500, tallying six kills.  Sartor also led the team in digs with a match-high eight.  Taking care of the ETSU setting, Brittany Kessel (Libertyville, Ill.) totaled 20 assists, while Jennifer Emerson (Santa Clara, Calif.) added 17.

The Lady Bucs shot out to a 7-2 lead early in game one, before the Panthers battled back within one, at 12-11, capped off by a kill from HPU's Jamie Kaufman.  That would be as close as High Point would get, as ETSU battled back to a 16-12 lead.

"We've taken our experiences from the road and used them in our gameplay," said Devine, whose squad dropped a pair of contests on the road this past weekend.  "We were definitely more mentally focused than we have been."

A ball handling error by Kessel would bring the Panthers within three, before the Lady Bucs rattled off seven-straight points, making the score 23-13.  Kiselich belted three of her five kills in the frame, during the run.  HPU's Sabrina Wahid was just as hot in game one, smacking five kills of her own.  Both Kiselich and Wahid hit .833 for the stanza.  Wahid led the Panthers offensively, with eight kills for the match.

Game two was all Lady Bucs once again, as ETSU held the Panthers at bay for the 30-20 win.  Palmer and Buhr both tallied four kills in the frame, while HPU's Ashley Mellott posted five.  Game two was High Point's best hitting output, as the Panther's swung .290 in the stanza.  The Lady Bucs hit .367.

The Lady Bucs closed out the evening with an easy 30-11 win, behind four kills from both Kiselich and Buhr.  ETSU hit .450, while holding High Point to -.136.

ETSU has a pair of crucial A-Sun matches in Brooks Gym this weekend with Mercer on Friday, Oct. 28, at 7 p.m., and Stetson on Saturday, Oct. 29, at 12 p.m.  The Lady Bucs will also hold Senior Day festivities on Saturday.