At the dawn of last Friday’s game, coach Glenn Kiriyama’s volleyball squad braced itself for the arrival of the UMBC Retrievers. What the team expected was a challenge, with players as worthy as the sports canine Air Bud. What Binghamton University got was Odie from ‘Garfield.’ The Bearcats demolished the UMBC Retrievers in a four-game exploit on Friday at home and then went on to sweep them 3-0 on Sunday at Maryland.
‘I thought the team played exceptionally well this weekend,’ said Kiriyama, whose team is now in second place in the conference behind Stony Brook. ‘These matches were crucial.’
The Retrievers (19-7, 4-3 AE) simply could not match up to the Bearcats (13-14, 5-2 AE) who placed a force-field at the net, blocking almost every attack placed on them. In the first of the two matches, the Bearcats donned a total of 17 team blocks and 56 kills in comparison to three Retriever blocks and 46 kills. UMBC’s play was littered with errors, 42, while BU committed just 17.
‘We went against a team that was first place in the conference,’ Kiriyama said. ‘By serving and blocking well we leaped ahead of them.’
Leading the way were two BU freshmen, both tallying double-doubles. Lindsey Mueller put up 42 assists and 12 digs while Michelle McDonough totaled 12 kills and 11 digs. The Bearcats recorded a hitting percentage of .412 in the first game that saw up to six-point serving runs by Mueller that led to a 30-16 win by the Bearcats.
The Retrievers bounced back in the second game. With a total of 20 kills, their hitting percentage was at .250, eight times better than their .032 in game 1. While the game was taking place on the court, another match ensued between referee Hanseng Leong and UMBC head coach Ian Blanchard. Blanchard called out the referee on a number of calls he thought were questionable, especially one involving junior libero Jaclyn Strader. Blanchford claimed that Strader made an overhand set while standing on the 3-meter line; the rule says that the libero must be standing behind (and not stepping on) that line. The play stood and UMBC moved on to eventually edge out the game, 30-28.
Games 3 and 4 mirrored the first game. UMBC went into the negatives, -.054 and -.159 respectively, committing more errors kills. Game 3 was tied at 13 until the Bearcats surged ahead with a plethora of blocks and kills. They went on a six-run rally at the closing of the game, winning 30-20. The fourth game turned even worse for the Retrievers, committing 16 errors, while the Bearcats took advantage going on to win by 16 points, smoking the Retrievers 30-14.
UMBC hoped the change of scenery would change the outcome, but the host Retrievers collapsed again under Bearcat heat on Sunday, this time losing 3-0. With 30 errors and the inability to get past Binghamton’s defense, UMBC’s 10 match home streak came to an end.
Junior Ashley Allen hit a career-best .429 and 17 kills while Mueller put up another extraordinary performance with 43 assists, 13 digs and four assisted blocks. The freshman was named this week as America East’s Rookie of the week. Averaging 12.34 assists per game, Mueller has had four consecutive double-doubles and 19 overall this season. Senior Jacki Kane continues her reign as the all-time block leader, averaging about 2.5 per game and donning a season total of 141.
With the players rising in skill and reaching new heights, Kiriyama is pleased with their performance.
‘Towards the end of the game our team came out strong,’ he said. ‘They were able to finish strong.’
The Bearcats look to take on the Siena Saints at the West Gym tonight at 7 p.m. This will be their last non-conference match this season as the game will be followed by a series of conference games starting this weekend until the AE Tournament in November.