William & Mary Raise $1,500 For Dig Pink, Win First CAA Match

  0 Braden Keith | October 14th, 2017 | College - Women's Indoor, Division I Mid-Major, News

Match Stats

  • William & Mary def. UNCW 3-1 (26-24, 25-19, 23-25, 26-24)
  • William & Mary moves to 4-17 (1-6 CAA); UNCW falls to 7-12 (1-6 CAA)
  • Williamsburg, Virginia
  • Attendance: 273
  • Match Stats

Press Release Courtesy William & Mary:

WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – A stellar performance from senior Sydney Biniak propelled the William & Mary volleyball team to a gritty 3-1 (24-26, 19-25, 25-23, 24-26) triumph over Colonial Athletic Association rival UNCW in its Dig Pink Match on Friday evening. Biniak slammed 25 kills and registered an incredible .512 attack percentage to lead the Tribe (4-17, 1-6 CAA) past the Seahawks (7-12, 1-6 CAA).

W&M came out firing on offense after hitting over .300 in the first two sets to take a 2-0 match lead. The Green and Gold battled through 16 ties and five lead changes to outlast UNCW in extra points in the first period. The Tribe maintained its potent offense in the second set, recording a .325 attack percentage and leading by as many as nine points.

The Seahawks held off a Tribe rally n the third set to prevent a sweep. A 4-1 run allowed UNCW to build a five-point advantage at 19-14. The Tribe answered with a 6-1 spark to close the gap to 24-23, but the Seahawks claimed the stanza behind the swing of Maddy Kline.

In the fourth set, three quick Biniak kills allowed the Green and Gold to take an early 4-0 lead. However, the Seahawks responded with another four unanswered points and held a 10-8 advantage at the mid-point. The Tribe found itself facing a four-point deficit, before three Biniak hammers highlighted a 5-1 jolt that granted W&M a 23-21 edge. UNCW’s Sydney Brock nailed a kill to pull even at 24-all, but a Seahawks’ attack error and a big-time combination block from junior Heather Pippus and freshman Julia Brown sealed the victory.

Inside the Numbers
– As a team, W&M finished with a .300-plus attack percentage in its second consecutive match, both efforts resulting in wins. The Tribe hit .333 in a sweep of in-state foe Norfolk State on Tuesday night.
– The Tribe edged the Seahawks in blocks 9-to-7. The Green and Gold has totaled at least eight stops in four straight matches. Brown led the way with a match-best six rejections.
– Biniak earned 11 of her 25 kills in the match-deciding fourth set. It’s her third time this season exceeding 20 kills. Additionally, the four-year captain has hit over .500 in back-to-back matches.
– Pippus and rookie Kate Dedrick also recorded double-digit kills to contribute to the offensive fireworks. Pippus spiked 12 kills and Dedrick added 10 more.
– Sophomore Autumn Brenner earned her second double-double of 2017 behind 23 assists and 10 digs.
– Junior Katie Kemp dished out a match-high 36 assists, which also represents a season-best for the setter.
– Away from the net, senior Sara Zumbach led all players with 23 digs to go along with a pair of aces.

Notes
The Tribe surpassed its goal of raising $1500 to go toward breast cancer research as part of the Dig Pink Initiative…W&M advances its all-time series lead over UNCW to 51-12, including a 23-5 mark in Kaplan Arena…Furthermore, head coach Melissa Ferris is 2-1 agianst the Seahawks in her two-year tenure….Biniak’s 25 kills rank fourth in school history in four-set matches, while her 27 points tie second…The Elkridge, Md., native is also 14 shy of reaching 1,000 career kills…Sophomore Casey Foote recorded a career-best 22 digs and added eight kills.

Up Next
The Tribe concludes a three-match homestead with the CAA’s second-best College of Charleston on Sunday, Oct. 15 at 1 pm.

Press Release Courtesy UNCW:

WILLIAMSBURG, Virginia – UNCW freshman setter Brynn Montgomery doled out a career-high 53 assists and added 13 digs but the Seahawks dropped a 3-1 (26-24, 25-19, 23-25, 26-24) verdict in Colonial Athletic Association volleyball action on Friday at Kaplan Arena.

The Tribe earned its first CAA win of the season to improve to 4-17 overall and 1-6 in the league. The Seahawks, meanwhile, dipped to 7-12 on the season and 1-6 in the CAA. All six losses have been by the identical score of 3-1.

“Offensively, we had a balanced night with multiple hitters contributing,” said UNCW Head Coach Amy Bambenek. “Unfortunately, our blocking picked up late in the match to help slow down William & Mary. When sets are won and lost by two points, we need to stay confident in earning our points.”

Montgomery’s 53 assists were the most by a Seahawk since 2014 when Alyssa Desjardins had 57 in a five-set loss at the College of Charleston in the CAA tournament semifinals.

Junior Halle Hunt led four Seahawks in double figure kills, totaling 14 on the evening and she rounded out her fourth career double-double with 10 digs. Maddy Kline recorded her seventh double-double of the season with 13 kills and 15 digs.

W&M’s Sydney Biniak held match-high honors with 25 kills and hit .512 on the night. Setter Autumn Brenner had 23 assists and 10 digs while Sara Zumbach finished with a match-best 23 digs.

The Seahawks conclude their week trip on Sunday with a 2 p.m. start at Elon.

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About Braden Keith

Braden Keith

Braden Keith is the Editor-in-Chief and co-founder of VolleyMob.com. Braden's first foray into sports journalism came in 2010, when he launched a swimming website called The Swimmers' Circle. Two years later, he joined SwimSwam.com as a co-founder. Long huge fans of volleyball, when Braden and the SwimSwam partners sought an opportunity to …

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