HOBOKEN, N.J.– Eastern University Women's Volleyball pushed the top-seeded Stevens Institute of Technology Ducks to four sets, but a six-point Stevens run midway through the fourth set proved to be too much to overcome and the Eagles fell in the MAC Freedom Championship match for the first time in 12 trips.
How It Happened:
The Ducks (20-11) earned the top seed in the tournament with an unbeaten run through the league including a decisive three-set win over the Eagles on Oct. 22. In that match, Stevens jumped to a huge lead and ran away with the first set.
The Eagles competed from the start in todays match, and though the Eastern offense struggled to a .054 hitting percentage in the opening set, they remained in striking distance and closed a seven-point gap to 23-21 with a four-point run with
Katie Stenby at the serving line. The Eagles forced a pair of Stevens timeouts in the run. Stenby's serve after the second landed inches beyond the back line, and the Ducks were able to earn the final point of the set for a 25-21 win.
The Eagles hit .294 in the second set, but the Ducks hit just a little better on the way to a 25-20 win and a two-set lead. The Ducks built a 16-13 lead with a pair of points on Allie Morton's serve and the Eagles were not able to cut into the lead the rest of the way.
The Eastern offense got going in the third set. The Eagles put down 18 kills on 39 swings to earn a 25-19 win.
Caroline Shelby had seven of her 18 kills in the set.
Ally Spillane had five kills and an ace.
The Ducks were able to use their size advantage to thwart the Eastern attack with three blocks in the final set. The teams were trading points until Stevens ran off six in a row to stretch a 13-12 edge to 19-12. Stevens won the championship with a 25-18 win in the fourth.
This is the first year in the MAC Freedom for Stevens. It is also Eastern's final year. The Eagles will move to the other side of the MAC next fall. This is the first year since 2007 that Eastern Women's Volleyball will not play in the NCAA Tournament.
Cecilia Bauer had 18 kills and 10 digs in her final match in an Eastern Uniform. She finishes the year with 354 kills and 364 digs. She has 1220 career digs.
Stenby had 21 digs her season with 450 digs. She had 410 in her first three seasons. Morgan Kiline had 22 assists and nine digs. She finishes her career with 3934 assists and 1028 digs.
Shelby had 18 kills and an ace in her final MAC Freedom Tournament game. In her six career matches in the tournament, she has 118 kills and 18 errors on 234 attacks in 21 sets. That is a .427 htting percentage and over 5.6 kills per set.
Ally Spillane posted 10 kills.
Coach Birtwistle Says:
"I thought we were ready to play tonight. We had our runs and put Stevens in some uncomfortable positions, but they're a great team and they responded."
"All our seniors stepped up tonight as Ce was strong on both sides of the ball attacking and digging. Katie was solid in serve receive and had another 20-plus dig night, and Morgan ran a good offense to help keep us in the game. Caroline had another excellent postseason match as we adjusted to get her more involved."
"Overall we had a great season to return to the final. I'm proud of how far this team came this year."
