Site: Livonia, Mich. (Activities Center)
Score: No. 18 Madonna 3, Walsh 1 (32-30, 25-18, 21-25, 31-29)
Records: MU (29-4), WU (23-5)
Next MU event: Saturday, Oct. 24 vs. Indiana Wesleyan (Livonia, Mich.)
LIVONIA, Mich. (MadonnaCrusaders.com) - - Behind the 17th double-double of the season from junior Liz Dempsey (Wesltand, Mich.), the No. 18-ranked Madonna University volleyball team opened day two of the 2009 Crusader Classic Presented by BLT Sportswear and Apparel with a 3-1 win over Walsh (32-30, 25-18, 21-25, 31-29) on Saturday (Oct. 24) inside the Activities Center.
Dempsey (Westland, Mich.) led all players with a career best 25 kills to go along with 15 digs for her fifth straight double-double (kills/digs) for MU. Senior Mary McGinnis (Fraser, Mich.) added 15 kills while sophomore Karie Altman (Taylor, Mich.) chipped in with 14 terminations of her own. Senior Inta Grinvalds handed out a season best 65 assists while sophomores Amanda Koszela (Dearborn, Mich.) and Megan Fricke (Wyandotte, Mich.) posted 20 and 13 digs respectively. Natalie Borland led Walsh with 21 kills while Julianne O'Donnell added 20 in the set back.
The opening set of the match was back and forth early with 14 ties and four lead changes before MU prevailed 32-30. After the Crusaders rallied to tie the set at 19-all, neither side could hold a lead of more than two as that was the third tie of the 14 seen in the set. Walsh had set point at 25-24 but sophomore Katie Czarnecki (Chesterfield, Mich.) pulled MU to even with a cross court kill and a 25-25 score.
The Crusaders had their first set point after sophomore Marie Martin (Canton, Mich.) and Dempsey teamed up for a block on Borland but WU tied the set at again, this time at 27. The two sides traded points with each having one more chance at earning the set but failing to do so until a block from Altman and Czarnecki followed by a McGinnis kill ended the marathon set at 32-30 for Madonna.
Walsh led set two early but after going up 12-9, saw Madonna pull back to even at 13-13 on a block from freshman Kathleen Donehue (New Hudson, Mich.) and McGinnis. MU went in front for good at 16-15 on a Donehue termination and never looked back, getting five Dempsey kills down the stretch in the 25-18 win.
Set three of the match saw 11 ties as the two sides traded points early and often until Walsh went up 19-18 on a Borland kill before closing the set on a 6-3 run to climb back into the match with the 25-21 win and trim the MU lead to 2-1.
The fourth and final set of the match was another nail bitter as the two sides were tied 14 times and the lead changed times five times. Madonna was up 24-20 with a chance to close the match but four straight Walsh terminations tied the set at 24-all. In what became a reoccurring theme through out the match, the two sides traded the next eight points until WU was up 29-28 after a MU miscue. Dempsey then put a ball down that pulled MU again into a tie, this time at 29 before a Walsh error and an Altman kill finished off the set at 31-29 in favor of Madonna.
In all, the match saw 45 ties and 14 lead changes.
Madonna closes the Crusader Classic with a 1:30pm match against Indiana Wesleyan.
Contact: Patrick Moore (734) 432-5834
