Holehouses’s school-record 45 digs & Otero’s Triple-Double Lead Towson to 5-Set Win vs. JMU

MATCH STATS

• Towson def. James Madison 3-2 (25-23, 25-27, 25-22, 24-26, 15-10)
• Towson improves to 25-4 (11-4, CAA); James Madison falls to 18-5 (9-5, CAA)
• Towson, Maryland (CAA Match)
• Attendance: 138
• Box Score

Towson, Maryland – In a match featuring a pair of teams in the 60’s in this week’s RPI poll, Towson came out with a five-set win over James Madison.

In a match without a ton of momentum or long runs, it was versatility and consistency that was needed and shown in Julymar Otero, who logged a triple-double with 27 assists, 15 kills (.233) and 14 digs. Interestingly enough, Otero now has triple-doubles in both matches with James Madison and now has six on the year, including in two straight matches.

Beyond that, Towson used a stingy back-row defense led by a phenomenal match from Anna Holehouse (45 digs), as she set the new school-record for most digs in a match, while Carola Biver (16 kills, 22 digs) added to both the offense and defense. Holehouse proved to be a critical performer as the Tigers out-dug the Dukes 118-102 in a match where neither team was terminal and were thwarted by strong defenses. The .110 (Towson) to .103 (James Madison) hitting percentages were a combination of that back-row defense as well as over two blocks per set from both sides.

In the losing effort for James Madison, M’Kaela White (13 kills, .314, 10 blocks), Sarah Martin (21 assists, 13 digs, seven blocks) and Tilbe Yaglioglu (16 assists, 14 digs) netted double-doubles while Taylor Austin (31 digs) gave the Dukes a big dig-producer of their own.

The first set was incredibly tight as 16 ties and six lead changes highlighted the game as Towson just slipped in front 25-23. There was less back-and-forth in the second with seven ties and three lead changes, but it was just as close of a finish as James Madison came down from 24-23 to to even the match 1-1 in sets with a 27-25 extra point victory.

Compared to the first two sets, the third seemed like it was heavily distanced. With three ties and zero lead changes, Towson led throughout and came out on top by three points – the most in a set to that point. They also led for a big chunk in the fourth as they tried to close things out, but a 6-2 James Madison run turned things around to force a fifth.

In that fifth and final set, Towson jumped in front 6-1. However, James Madison stormed back and eventually evened the match where it sat tied at 10-10. A Biver kill was followed by back-to-back Otero points at the start of a 5-0 run that would end the match in the Tigers favor at 15-10.

Just one more match remains for Towson before the CAA Tournament as they host Delaware for senior night. James Madison has another top four team in the conference up next as they host Northeastern on Friday before finishing up regular season conference play on Sunday against Hofstra.

PRESS RELEASES:

Courtesy of Towson:

TOWSON, Md. – Behind a school record 45 digs from redshirt junior Anna Holehouse, the Towson University volleyball team earned a huge 3-2 win over James Madison University in Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) action Monday night.

Holehouse broke Kelli Scott’s school record for single-match digs (44 digs against UMBC in 1993) while the Tigers set the school record for digs during the rally-scoring era with 118.

THE BASICS
Towson 3, James Madison 2 (25-23, 25-27, 25-22, 24-26, 15-10)
SECU Arena, Towson, Md.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The first set was a back-and-forth battle that featured 16 ties and six lead changes. Neither team took a lead of more than three points during the stanza.
• With the set tied at 21-21, Towson (25-4, 11-4 CAA) took advantage of three straight errors by the Dukes (18-5, 9-5 CAA) to take a 24-21 edge.
• A kill from Kelly Vahos and a service ace from Taylor Gail pulled the Dukes to within one, 24-23.
• An attack error by the Dukes on the next serve gave Towson a 25-23 set win.
• With the second set tied at 12-12, Towson used a 7-2 run to take a 19-14 advantage. Junior Carola Biver had a pair of kills during that stretch while fellow junior Jocelyn Kuilan added a service ace and a block assist.
• A kill from senior Julymar Otero extended the Towson lead to 22-18.
• Towson pushed its advantage to 24-20 on a service error by the Dukes.
• However the visitors responded with a 7-1 run to close out the set and claim a 27-25 victory, which tied the match at 1-1. Briley Brind’Amour had a pair of kills during that stretch.
• The Black and Gold quickly jumped out to a 10-5 lead in the third set as James Madison used an early timeout. Biver had three straight kills for the Tigers during that run.
• Towson pushed its lead to 14-9 on a kill from Kuilan.
• Biver’s sixth kill of the set extended the home team’s advantage to 19-14.
• A kill from sophomore Silvia Grassini allowed Towson to take a 20-18 lead.
• The two teams continued to battle for each point before a kill from Kuilan secured a 25-22 set win and gave the Tigers a 2-1 lead in the match.
• Towson opened the fourth set by scoring 10 for the first 15 points. Kuilan had a pair of kills and a service ace during that run.
• The Tigers took a 14-8 lead on another kill from Kuilan.
• James Madison used an 8-2 run to tie the set at 16-16. M’Kaela White led the Dukes with three kills during that stretch.
• Towson took a 21-18 lead on a block from Otero and junior Olamide Sonuga.
• James Madison rallied back and took a 23-22 edge on a kill from White.
• The two teams traded points before a pair of attack errors by the Tigers gave James Madison a 26-24 set win and tied the match at 2-2.
• Towson quickly opened up a 5-1 lead in the fifth and deciding set and forced the Dukes to use an early timeout.
• A kill from Sonuga gave the Tigers a 7-2 advantage.
• James Madison scored six of the eight points and pulled to within one, 9-8.
• The two teams traded points before an attack error by the Tigers allowed James Madison to tie the set at 10-10.
• That 10th point was the last one James Madison scored in the match.
• Towson used a 5-0 run to close out a 15-10 set win and claimed victory in the match. Otero had a pair of kills during that stretch.

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE

• Playing five sets for the second straight match, the Tigers improved to 3-0 on the year when the match goes to five.
• Both teams struggled to hit the ball as Towson posted a .110 hitting percentage in the match while James Madison hit .103 in the contest.
• Towson’s 118 digs in the match set the school record for single-match digs during the rally-scoring era. It is also the most digs by a CAA school this season and will rank fourth in the nation by a Division I team this season.
• The Tigers had five players record double-digit digs in the contest and three of those players record 20 or more digs. In addition to Holehouse’s school record 45, Biver and sophomore Annie Ertzposted career-highs for digs with 22 and 20, respectively.
• Otero posted her CAA leading sixth triple-double of the season with 15 kills, 27 assists and 14 digs. She ranks second in the nation in that category.
• Biver and sophomore Marrisa Wonders each posted a double-double in the match. Biver finished with a match-high 16 kills and 22 digs while Wonders added 26 assists and 10 digs.
• The Tigers swept the season series from James Madison for the first time since 2014.
• Both teams were strong at the net as the Tigers posted 11 team blocks while James Madison had 14 team blocks. Sonuga led the Towson efforts with seven blocks.
• White led James Madison with 13 kills and 10 blocks.

The Tigers wrap up the regular season by hosting Delaware on Sunday, November 12 at 1 p.m. Towson will honor seniors Payton Windell and Otero before the match.

Courtesy of James Madison:

TOWSON, Md. – The James Madison volleyball team dropped a five-set match to Towson on Monday night inside the SECU Arena. The Dukes fall to 18-5 overall and 9-5 in Colonial Athletic Association action, while Towson moves to 25-4 and 11-4 in league play.

MATCH NOTES

• The Dukes fell in set scores of 23-25, 27-25, 22-25, 26-24, and 10-15.
• JMU’s performance was highlighted by M’Kaela White (13 kills, 10 blocks), Sarah Martin (21 assists, 13 digs) and Tilbe Yaglioglu (16 assists, 14 digs) who each tallied double-double performances.
• The Dukes tallied 14.0 total blocks to Towson’s 11.0. JMU was led by sophomore middle blocker, White who had 10, and sophomore setter, Martin who had seven.
• Four Dukes produced double-digit digs, led by senior Taylor Austinwith 31.
• Martin and Yaglioglu split the setting duties for the Dukes with 21 and 16, respectively.
• JMU had seven player contribute to the attacking game, led by White who had 13 kills. Bryn Recker and Briley Brind’Amour followed with nine each.
• Towson was led by three players who produced double-digit kill performances and five who tallied double-digit digs. Anna Holehouse held down the back-court for the Tigers as she had a match high of 45 digs.

DOUBLE-DOUBLE PERFORMANCES

• M’Kaela White added to her season accolades with her second double-double of the season with 13 kills and 10 blocks. Her 13 attacks were the tenth time this season the sophomore has posted double figure kills and the second time in blocks (10).
• Sarah Martin posted her third double-double of the season with 21 assists and 13 digs. It’s the twenty-first time this year the sophomore has set double-figures and the second time posting double figures in digs.
• Setter, Tilbe Yaglioglu also posted her third double-double of the season in assists and digs with 16 and 14, respectively. It’s the junior’s twentieth time posting double-digits in assists and third in digs, this season.

DOMINATE BLOCKING 
For the second consecutive match, and the fourteenth time this season, the Dukes have recorded double-digit blocks. JMU has out-blocked its opponents 247.0 to 122.0, averaging 2.8 blocks per set. Seven Dukes have tallied double-digit blocks, led by White with 129.0. The sophomore leads the league with 92 total blocks in conference play, averaging 1.61 per set.

UP NEXT 
The Dukes are back at home for their final stand of the regular season as they face Northeastern and Hofstra in crucial CAA matches. They will face the Huskies on Friday, Nov. 10 at 7 p.m. and the Pride on Sunday, Nov. 12 at 1 p.m. Earlier this season, the Dukes dropped a five-set match to Northeastern and won a five set match over Hofstra.