Sept. 28, 2008
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Notre Dame volleyball team defeated Georgetown for the 10th consecutive time, handing the Hoyas a 3-0 (25-20, 25-16, 25-18) loss during Sunday’s BIG EAST Conference matchup. Notre Dame got 12 kills from junior Christina Kaelin and nine kills on 15 swings by sophomore Kellie Sciacca to even its record to 7-7 overall and 2-0 versus league foes.
Georgetown carried a perfect 5-0 home record heading into Sunday’s match without dropping a set in McDonough Gym and fell to 8-7 (1-1 BIG EAST) on the season.
Sciacca knocked a kill (3-3) and followed with an ace to give Notre Dame a 4-3 lead in the first set. Georgetown scored the next four until freshman Kristen Dealy extinguished the rally with a backrow attack that fell inside the back corner. Junior Jamel Nicholas sent a quick set Sciacca’s way and the middle blocker converted to help Notre Dame regain the lead, 11-10. Neither team could take control of the set until senior Justine Stremick’s kill from the right side preceded her double block with junior Tara Enzweiler to make it an 18-16 contest. Another kill from the right side by Stremick (20-16) put the set out of Hoya reach.
Five kills by Sciacca in the set paced the Irish, who also got four kills and one block from Enzweiler while hitting .343 as a team. Fifteen of Notre Dame’s 17 kills were assisted by Nicholas. The Irish posted a .344 hitting percentage for the match – the highest of the season – behind Nicholas’ 36 assists in the contest.
Stremick had two kills and two blocks in the first set, and then scored the first point of the second frame for the visitors. A Hoya surge was quieted by Enzweiler’s offensive firepower which produced three more kills in the set. In fact, five Irish players (Enzweiler, Sciacca, Stremick, Dealy and Kaelin) registered three kills in the stanza. Consecutive kills by Sciacca put Notre Dame on top, 14-11, as the Irish outscored the Hoyas, 11-5, over the final stretch.
Coming out of intermission the Hoyas jumped ahead with a 4-1 run that was halted when Nicholas was victorious in a joust at the net. Notre Dame relied on its defense to scratch out a 15-3 run to cruise to the win. Freshman Megan Barnicle saw her first action of the season during the third set after sitting out the initial bulk of the schedule due to injury and recorded one kill.
Stremick finished with four blocks – two of the solo variety – with Enzweiler adding a pair of stuffs. Sophomore Megan Dunne led the team with eight digs.
Georgetown was paced by nine kills by Jessica Hardy.
Notre Dame continues its four-match road trip Saturday (Oct. 4) at Louisville followed by an Oct. 5 meeting at Cincinnati that will be televised on ESPNU.
–ND–