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Volleyball Falls To No. 6 Minnesota, Denver on Day Two of Golden Gopher Invite
Aug. 28, 2010
Minnesota Box Score
Minneapolis, Minn. - Junior Alicia Nelson (Apple Valley, Minn.) tallied a career-high 20 kills including six in a set one win but the Denver Pioneers rallied to win the next three sets for a 3-1 (20-25, 25-17, 25-17, 25-21) victory over the Stony Brook University volleyball team on Saturday on the second day of the 2010 Golden Gopher Invite. SBU also fell to No. 6 Minnesota, 3-0 (25-10, 25-13, 25-15), earlier in the day. Nelson added 10 digs against the Pioneers, recording her first career double-double. Senior Jeanette Gibbs (Port Jefferson, N.Y.) recorded a team-high 18 digs while freshmen Masa Balandzic (Pljevlja, Montenegro) and Hailee Herc (Eden. N.Y.) each had 11 digs. SBU trailed 10-7 in the early going of set one against the Pioneers, but the Seawolves then scored 10 of the next 12 points to take 17-12 lead. Nelson had three kills in the run. Denver closed within 20-17 but sophomore Greta Strenger (Woodbury, Minn.) answered with a kill and Herc and senior Ashley Headen (Alexandia, Va.) then combined on a block to give the Seawolves a 22-17 lead. Strenger closed the game out a few points later with a kill. The Seawolves jumped to a 7-5 lead in game two behind three kills from Nelson. Denver rallied to take 14-9 lead but SBU scored four straight points, including two more kills from Nelson, to close within one. But Denver scored the next four points and the Seawolves were unable to get closer than four the rest of the way as the Pioneers evened the match at one. Game three was close in the early going with the Seawolves tying the game at seven on kill from Headen.
The Pioneers then went on a 9-3 run though to take a 16-10 lead. SBU closed within four, 21-17, on back-to-back Denver attack errors but the Pioneers scored four straight points to clinch the set. Kills from Nelson and freshman Evann Slaughter (Clinton, Md.) brought Stony Brook within 12-10 early in game four and the Seawolves still trailed by just two, 18-16, following a Nelson kill. Denver responded with six straight points though, eventually closing the set and the match on Alyssa Bonelli kill. Sophomore Corinne Perry (Northport, N.Y.) had 34 assists for Stony Brook, which held Denver to a .185 attack percentage. The Pioneers were led by 10 kills each from Bonelli and Alex Turgeon. In the first match of the day, the No. 6 Golden Gophers hit .425 on the way to the three-set victory. Nelson led the Seawolves with eight kills while Gibbs recorded a team-high 10 digs. Tori Dixon led Minnesota with 13 kills. Stony Brook trailed 7-5 in the early going of set one after a kill from Nelson but the Golden Gophers then went on a 9-1 run to take a 16-6 lead. A Headen kill ended the run but Minnesota scored nine of the final 12 points to take the first set. The Seawolves took an early 4-3 lead in set two on a Nelson kill before Minnesota went on a 13-5 spurt to take a 16-9 advantage. Stony Brook closed within18-11 on another Nelson kill but the Golden Gophers responded with a 7-2 run to take a 2-0 lead. Minnesota jumped on the Seawolves early in set three, taking an 11-3 lead. Stony Brook eventually closed within five on a Strenger kill but the Golden Gophers eventually stretched their lead to 17-9 and went on to the 10-point victory to take the match. The Seawolves return to action on Tuesday, traveling to take on St. John's. Game time is set for 7 p.m. |
