By: Ryan Hartwig (@RyanHartwig)
GreenBayPhoenix.com
GRAND FORKS, N.D. (GreenBayPhoenix.com) - Lyndsay Zabkowicz (Oak Creek, Wis.) registered a career-high 22 kills as Green Bay (2-3)
opened the UND Classic with a thrilling 3-2 victory over Stephen F. Austin (3-2)
Friday evening at the Betty Engelstad Soiux Center in Grand Forks, N.D. The
Phoenix trailed 2-1 after the third set, but rallied to take sets four and five
in the 23-25, 25-17, 23-25, 25-21, 15-11 win.
"It was a good win for us,"
Green Bay head coach Debbie Kirch
said. "We didn't start the match very well, but after the Northern Illinois
match we talked a lot about changing momentum and how we are in control of that.
We also played really well offensively tonight. It was the best match our
outsides have had all season."
The Phoenix out-hit the
Ladyjacks .291 to .126 in the contest, which included dominant performances in
the three set wins. Green Bay hit .433 compared to SFA's .025 in set two,
recording kills on 15 of its 30 attempts while committing just two errors. The Phoenix
posted .294 and .348 percentages in sets four and five, respectively, while forcing
the Ladyjacks to hit just .050 and .077.
Zabkowicz hit .340 in the
match, committing just four errors in 53 attempts. The junior topped her
previous career high of 18 kills, which she set her freshman season against
Milwaukee. Monica Anderson (Cottage
Grove, Wis.) also posted a career-high kill total with 15, hitting a team-best
.361. Setting up the majority of the attacks was junior Leah Poel (Jenison, Mich.), who had a match and season-high 51
assists to go along with 18 digs. Katie Mroczenski (New Berlin, Wis.) also had a strong contest in the middle for
the Phoenix, helping on nine of the team's 12 total blocks.
The first set was tight
throughout, as neither team led by more than three at any point. With SFA
holding a 16-13 advantage, Zabkowicz drove home back-to-back kills to get the
Phoenix to within one. Three straight attack errors by the Ladyjacks gave Green
Bay its first lead at 18-16, but SFA took the next five points to go back ahead
21-18. An Anderson kill got the Phoenix back within one at 24-23, but a kill by
Paige Holland ended the set and gave SFA the 1-0 lead.
Green Bay got off to a
good start in set two, jumping out to a 10-4 lead thanks to seven kills by five
different players. The Phoenix pushed its lead to nine (17-8) and never looked
back, cruising comfortably to a 25-17 win.
After trailing 17-10 in
the third set, Green Bay went on a 10-3 run to even the score at 20-20. Three
straight kills moved the Ladyjacks back in front, but an error followed by a Carmen Leitermann (Schofield, Wis.)
service ace gave the Phoenix life down 23-22. Green Bay was unable to take
advantage, as an attack error gave SFA set point and a kill by Sabrina Burns
ended it, moving the Ladyjacks ahead 2-1.
With the score knotted at
4-4 early in the fourth, the Phoenix rattled off six straight points with Sabrina Marunowski (Milwaukee, Wis.)
serving. The Ladyjacks mounted a comeback, however, as two straight kills by
Keeley Kainer moved SFA back in front 20-19. A kill by Anderson, followed by
two SFA attack errors gave the Phoenix a one-point advantage, and a kill by
Leitermann forced the Ladyjacks to call timeout trailing 23-21. After a double block
by Leitermann and Poel, Zabkowicz closed it out with a kill to send the match
to the fifth and final set.
The fifth started with a
service ace by freshman Becca Mastey
(Pulaski, Wis.), giving the Phoenix a lead it would never relinquish. Green Bay
started fast, building a 6-1 advantage after kills from Leitermann, Mroczenski
and Zabkowicz. The Ladyjacks made things interesting, battling its way to
12-10, but back-to-back kills by Zabkowicz sealed the 15-11 win, giving the
Phoenix its second victory of the season.
Joining Zabkowicz and
Anderson with double-figure kills was Leitermann (11), who has recorded at
least 10 kills in four of the first five matches this season. Brittany Groth (Oak Creek, Wis.) led
the Phoenix with 20 digs, while Mastey added a career-best 17.
Green Bay returns to
action in the UND Classic on Saturday with matches against host North Dakota at
1 p.m. and South Dakota at 5 p.m.
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