ATLANTA, Ga. -- On the second day of action at the University
Athletic Association round robin, the Brandeis volleyball team
improved upon its day one performance. The Judges opened with a 3-1
win over Rochester to even their conference mark at 1-1, then took
the first set from 19th-ranked Chicago before dropping a 3-1
decision. Coach Michelle Kim's squad will return to Waltham with a
10-7 overall record, 1-2 in the Association.
The Judges opened the second day of play against Rochester.
Brandeis blitzed the Yellowjackets in the first set, 25-15, but UR
bounced back with a 25-19 result in the second. The Judges closed
out the match, however, with close wins in the third and fourth,
25-20 and 25-21.
Leading the way with her seventh double-double of the season was
senior outside hitter Paige Blasco (Greeley,
Colo./Frontier Acad.), who notched 20 kills, a .207 hitting
percentage, and a season-high 25 digs. The Judges as a whole had a
fine defensive showing, with 84 digs, five shy of their
season-best. Also reaching double figures were sophomore outside
hitter/defensive specialist Susan Sun (Acton,
Mass./Acton-Boxborough) with 19, rookie outside hitter
Si-Si Hensley (Fullerton, Calif./Troy) with 17 and
senior setter Abby Blasco (Greeley, Colo./Frontier
Acad.) with 15. Abby joined her twin sister with a double-double
thanks to 39 assists and came up one block shy of a triple-double
with nine block assists. Senior middle blocker Nicole Smith (Marietta, Ga./Alan C. Pope), playing in front of a
home-town crowd, had 14 kills and just two errors in 22 attempts
for a .545 hitting percentage. Smith also added eight block
assists.
Against Chicago, the Judges kept up their momentum in the
opening set, taking a 25-21 victory. The Maroons bounced back
quickly, however, winning the second set by the same score. UC
eventually completed the win with 25-16, 25-19 victories in the
third and fourth sets.
Paige Blasco led the offense with 14 kills and had 11 digs for
her second double-double of the tournament and eighth of the
season. She also added three service aces. Abby Blasco and Smith
both had nine kills apiece. Abby added 26 assists and nine digs,
while Hensley led the team with 12 digs.
