ST. LOUIS, Mo. -- The Brandeis volleyball team split its first
two matches of the University Athletic Association (UAA) volleyball
tournament pool play at Washington University. The Judges dropped
their opening match against top-seeded and top-ranked Emory
University, 3-0, testing the Eagles in the third set before
falling. Set scores were 25-14, 25-12, 27-25. Senior outside hitter
Lorraine Wingenbach (Buffalo, N.Y.) and junior
right-side Piera Carfagno (Los Angeles, Calif.)
tied for team-high honors with nine kills each. Sophomore setter
Abby Blasco (Greeley, Colo.) had 19 assists, four
blocks and a team-high eight digs.
The Judges then avenged one of their four regular-season UAA
losses, defeating the University of Chicago, 3-2, in a marathon
match. After Brandeis won the first two sets, 25-20, 25-19, the
Maroons answered with 25-22 triumphs in the next two. The Judges
bounced back to win their longest fifth set of the season, 24-22,
to take the match. Chicago had three match points, but sophomore
outside hitter Paige Blasco (Greeley, Colo.) had a
solo block at 14-13, sister Abby and sophomore middle blocker
Nicole Smith (Marietta, Ga.) had a block at 18-17
and Wingenbach had a big kill at 19-18 to help the Judges survive.
Wingenbach finished with a season-high 20 kills with a .349 hitting
percentage. She added 14 digs and could become Brandeis's all-time
leader in the Judges' last two matches of the season on Saturday.
Smith had 16 kills with a .500 hitting percentage and five blocks.
Abby Blasco had 55 assists, 13 digs and four blocks. Senior
Violette Ruggiero (Paradise Valley, Ariz.) led the
team with 19 digs.
Tomorrow, Brandeis will play the University of Rochester for a
chance to compete in the tournament's third-place match if Emory
defeats Chicago.
The Judges enter the Rochester match with a record of to 18-12
overall, 4-5 UAA. Emory is now 28-4, 9-0 UAA, while Chicago is
19-15, 4-5 UAA.
EMORY BOX
SCORE
CHICAGO
BOX SCORE