Lehigh University Athletics
Tuesday, November 19
Annapolis, Md.
7 p.m.
Lehigh University
14-17
0
at
3
Navy (Quarterfinals)
16-11
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lehigh | 20 | 21 | 16 | 0 |
| Navy | 25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
Photo by: Justin Lafleur
Mountain Hawks toppled by Navy, conclude 2019 season in quarterfinal round
11/19/2019 10:02:00 PM | Volleyball
ANNAPOLIS, Md. — After dropping the first set, the Lehigh volleyball team opened up the second set on a 7-2 run and battled throughout, but Navy proved to be too much, defeating the Mountain Hawks in straight sets (20-25, 21-25, 16-25) in the Patriot League quarterfinal round. With the defeat, Lehigh's season concludes with an overall record of 14-17, a Patriot League record of 7-9 following the team's brief return to the postseason.
The first set didn't go as smooth as the team would have liked to, trailing Navy early on, but a 4-0 run to close it out, forcing the Mids to take a timeout with a 24-20 lead gave Lehigh a little bit of life moving forward despite not being able to get the first set victory.
The Mountain Hawks got on that 7-2 run to open Set 2, capped off by a block assist for Julia Pressly and Hannah Wright. That cause Navy to take a timeout. The break allowed the Midshipmen to re-group and take seven of the next eight points to tie the set up at 8 apiece. After needing to fight back from a deficit, Lehigh tied it back up at 17 forcing another Navy timeout. With a 22-21 lead, the Mountain Hawks dropped the final three points to fall 25-21.
"I think after the girls saw that we were still able to play at a high level, that really pushed them heading into the second set," said head coach Alexa Keckler. "We had a lot of momentum and a lot of excitement and that definitely showed from the beginning of that second set."
Lehigh never led during the third set, but stayed near to Navy, trailing just 12-11. However, the Midshipmen won eight straight points to take a commanding 20-11 lead. Lehigh battled from that point forward, but wasn't able to climb back out of the hole, as Navy took the final set, 25-16 and the match, 3-0 to advance to the Patriot League semifinals.
"It's playoff time and Navy was a little bit more focused, a little bit more locked in," said Keckler. "They played solid defense and really turned it on offensively in the third set.
"The first two, I thought we did a pretty good job of hanging in there, but we struggled a little bit getting going offensively."
Lehigh was led by senior Julia Pressly, who finished with 11 kills, four block assists and two digs in her final match in the Brown and White. Sabrina Lancaster ended her junior campaign with nine kills and six digs, while sophomore setter Alina Lam had 22 assists and senior libero Jess Donaldson had 19 digs in her final match at Lehigh. Senior Emily Poole finished with three kills and four total blocks, while senior Lauren Bright had two kills and a block assist.
"There's big shoes to fill for sure," Keckler said. "Each of the seniors bring a lot of aspects to team. Whether it's different strengths, maturity, accountability, passion, I could go on and on.
"They are leaving a great legacy and this is a group of girls that made the most of their four years, got to compete for a Patriot League Championship multiple times and I hope that legacy is picked up and embraced by those that come behind them. But they have a lot to be proud of and have a lot of great accomplishments that they've been able to achieve and it'll be exciting to see what they go out and do."
The Mountain Hawks hit .100 as a team, including a team-high .200 in the final set.
Lehigh's 2019 campaign finishes with a quarterfinal round exit, but the team has a lot to be proud of and a lot to look forward to heading into the offseason in preparation for the 2020 season.
"It's going to be an opportunity for our underclassmen to make a name for themselves, to embrace the spring season to get better," said Keckler. "I think it will be an opportunity for them to really establish in their own way what kind of legacy they want to leave and what kind of story they want to write."
Like Lehigh Volleyball on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
The first set didn't go as smooth as the team would have liked to, trailing Navy early on, but a 4-0 run to close it out, forcing the Mids to take a timeout with a 24-20 lead gave Lehigh a little bit of life moving forward despite not being able to get the first set victory.
The Mountain Hawks got on that 7-2 run to open Set 2, capped off by a block assist for Julia Pressly and Hannah Wright. That cause Navy to take a timeout. The break allowed the Midshipmen to re-group and take seven of the next eight points to tie the set up at 8 apiece. After needing to fight back from a deficit, Lehigh tied it back up at 17 forcing another Navy timeout. With a 22-21 lead, the Mountain Hawks dropped the final three points to fall 25-21.
"I think after the girls saw that we were still able to play at a high level, that really pushed them heading into the second set," said head coach Alexa Keckler. "We had a lot of momentum and a lot of excitement and that definitely showed from the beginning of that second set."
Lehigh never led during the third set, but stayed near to Navy, trailing just 12-11. However, the Midshipmen won eight straight points to take a commanding 20-11 lead. Lehigh battled from that point forward, but wasn't able to climb back out of the hole, as Navy took the final set, 25-16 and the match, 3-0 to advance to the Patriot League semifinals.
"It's playoff time and Navy was a little bit more focused, a little bit more locked in," said Keckler. "They played solid defense and really turned it on offensively in the third set.
"The first two, I thought we did a pretty good job of hanging in there, but we struggled a little bit getting going offensively."
Lehigh was led by senior Julia Pressly, who finished with 11 kills, four block assists and two digs in her final match in the Brown and White. Sabrina Lancaster ended her junior campaign with nine kills and six digs, while sophomore setter Alina Lam had 22 assists and senior libero Jess Donaldson had 19 digs in her final match at Lehigh. Senior Emily Poole finished with three kills and four total blocks, while senior Lauren Bright had two kills and a block assist.
"There's big shoes to fill for sure," Keckler said. "Each of the seniors bring a lot of aspects to team. Whether it's different strengths, maturity, accountability, passion, I could go on and on.
"They are leaving a great legacy and this is a group of girls that made the most of their four years, got to compete for a Patriot League Championship multiple times and I hope that legacy is picked up and embraced by those that come behind them. But they have a lot to be proud of and have a lot of great accomplishments that they've been able to achieve and it'll be exciting to see what they go out and do."
The Mountain Hawks hit .100 as a team, including a team-high .200 in the final set.
Lehigh's 2019 campaign finishes with a quarterfinal round exit, but the team has a lot to be proud of and a lot to look forward to heading into the offseason in preparation for the 2020 season.
"It's going to be an opportunity for our underclassmen to make a name for themselves, to embrace the spring season to get better," said Keckler. "I think it will be an opportunity for them to really establish in their own way what kind of legacy they want to leave and what kind of story they want to write."
Like Lehigh Volleyball on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
Team Stats
LEHIGH
Navy
Kills
28
41
Errors
17
14
Attempts
110
119
Hitting %
.100
.227
Points
37.0
55.0
Assists
26
40
Aces
3
8
Blocks
6.0
6.0
Game Leaders
Kills
11
Aces
0
Blocks
4
Kills
9
Aces
0
Blocks
0
Kills
3
Aces
0
Blocks
4
Kills
2
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Players Mentioned
MB
/ Volleyball
L/DS
/ Volleyball
OH
/ VolleyballMB
/ VolleyballOH
/ Volleyball
RS/OH
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