Lehigh University
St. Francis (N.Y.)
Lehigh sweeps St. Francis (N.Y.) in home opener
9/8/2009 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
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BETHLEHEM, Pa. – After playing their first six matches of the season on the road, the Mountain Hawks finally returned home to Leeman-Turner Arena Tuesday night and did not disappoint. Lehigh defeated the St. Francis (N.Y.) Terriers 3-0 to up its record to 2-5 on the season.
The Mountain Hawks were able to feed off the home court advantage to beat the Terriers 25-22, 25-11, and 25-16.
“It’s a good feeling to win our first match at home,” head coach Jenny Maurer said. “We came out and were a little anxious, but we settled down and played our game.”
The Mountain Hawks fell behind early in the first set 6-0, but they were able to battle back and score five straight points to take control of the match. St. Francis would not go easy as it cut the score to 23-22 late in the set. The Mountain Hawks received a point off a serving error and sophomore Chelsea Sheridan closed out the set with a kill.
In the second set Lehigh was able to build a 21-7 lead and never looked back. The final set was a little bit closer, but the Mountain Hawks once again built a comfortable lead and they would close the match out for the victory.
Lehigh was led by junior captain Brittany Dickinson who finished the match with a double-double. Dickinson tallied 25 assists, 11 kills and a .714 hitting percentage which were all match-highs.
“I give credit to my teammates for setting me up,” Dickinson said. “It was unbelievable to come out and win our first match at home.”
Sophomore Angelika Kopacz finished the match with eight kills and three serving aces. Emma Melendez led the team with eight digs and freshman Taylor Poole contributed six kills.
Once again the Mountain Hawks got contributions from several different players and it was ultimately Brittany Dickinson who stepped up in the match.
“Brittany got setup and made some big plays,” Maurer said. “That’s the great thing about our team, we always have several players that step up and contribute in different ways.”
Lehigh will look to carry its momentum from the home opener into this weekend’s action as they have three matches in two days.
“Our coach said let’s start this as our weekend,” Dickinson said. “We have the same outlook for this weekend and a lot of momentum heading into Friday.”
The Mountain Hawks will return to action Friday on day one of the Crosstown Tournament at the Leeman-Turner Arena. Lehigh will start the tournament against the Providence Friars at 6:00 p.m. For live video of the match go to Lehighsports.com.
Lehigh - St. Francis (NY) Post-Match Extra
