Alabama
Holy Cross
Alabama Volleyball Takes Down Holy Cross in Three Sets
8/24/2012 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Aug. 24, 2012
WORCESTER, Mass. - The Alabama volleyball team posted a three-set victory over Holy Cross in the Beanpot Classic to open the 2012 season. The Crimson Tide used scores of 25-20, 25-15, and 25-16 to put the Crusaders away 3-0 in the first match of the tournament. Alabama was led by senior Kayla Fitterer, who had a team-high 10 kills in the match.
"We're really pleased with how some of our younger players performed in their first match," second-year head coach Ed Allen said. "Our ball control was consistent and gave us opportunities. I was disappointed with our start and the number of errors we had in our attack, but we settled down after the first set, and committed half the number of errors in the last two sets. Overall we're pleased with getting the first match out of the way and getting some experience for our younger players."
Fitterer fell one kill shy of 1,000 for her career, as the 10 kills give her 999 for her career. Fitterer did not start for the Tide, but came off the bench to post a .259 hitting percentage with two block assists. In her Crimson Tide debut, Pricilla Duke-Ezeji tallied nine kills and a .316 hitting percentage.
Freshman Sierra Wilson was the first freshmen to start at setter since 2004 and played well in her first match at Alabama. Wilson had 32 assists, nine digs, four kills and three blocks in her Crimson Tide debut.
"I think Sierra did a great job and running the offense and was very poised as a freshman," Allen said. "She did a nice job reading the defense and recognized that she had some opportunities and took and advantage of them. The ball she delivered was consistent, but we expect her to improve just like any other player. She also did a great just at the service line. I don't think we could ask her to play much better in her first collegiate match."
Andrea McQuaid filled the stat sheet with eight kills, 11 digs, two aces two assists and one block. Yukie Futami led the Tide with a match-high 13 digs and Leigh Moyer finished the day with a .500 hitting percentage (5-1/8), four digs and three block assists.
With the score tied 18-18 in the first set, Moyer helped the Tide open a comfortable lead, serving five straight points to give the Alabama some breathing room at 23-18, as UA closed out the set with a 7-2 run.
"It warm and the climate is such, that when you play two matches in one day you don't want to go further than you have to" Allen said. "Holy Cross is a team that played with a lot of effort and showed up to compete with us. We're looking for more consistency in our attack, but that will develop as players become more familiar. It's expected when you have a young setter and people are adjusting to the type of ball she delivers. We're asking a lot of those kids to be able to gel right away."
After Holy Cross opened a 3-1 lead in the second set, Alabama answered with an 8-2 run to open a 9-5 advantage following back-to-back kills by Duke-Ezeji. UA's lead was 23-15 before the Tide scored the final two points of the set on kills by Katherine White and McQuaid to take a 2-0 lead in the match.
In the third set, Holy Cross held a 2-1 lead, but Alabama quickly recovered to hold a 10-5 advantage following a pair of Crusaders' errors. Alabama's lead reached as many as 12 points (23-11), before HC ran off five points to cut the deficit to 23-16. A kill by UA's Kanesha Burch and an ace by Kryssi Daniels ended the match with a 25-16 third set victory.
Alabama will take on Northestern in its second match of the Beanpot Classic at 3 p.m. CT on Friday afternoon from the Holy Cross Field House. The audio broadcast of the match will be available for free on RollTide.com.
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