Oct. 6, 2001
The University of Notre Dame volleyball team won its sixth straight match with a three-game victory (30-23, 30-17, 31-29) over Boston College at Power Gym on Saturday, Oct. 6. The 22nd-ranked Irish are now 9-3 on the season and 4-0 in BIG EAST Conference competition this season.
It was a balanced effort by the Irish offense, as four Notre Dame players recorded five or more kills in the match. Senior middle blocker Malinda Goralski led the team with nine kills on .368 hitting, while Kristy Kreher and Kim Fletcher added seven kills each.
Notre Dame struggled with its hitting, posting just a .214 hitting mark, but controlled the match by shutting down the Boston College offense. The Eagles managed just .035 hitting, while Notre Dame executed 13 team blocks and dug 57 attacks.
Much of the credit for the Irish victory goes to their defensive specialists – Christa Moen and Janie Alderete. Both back row aces totaled double-digit digs in the match, including a career-high 10 from Moen.
Notre Dame’s dominating blocking at the net also played its part in the victory. The Irish posted over 10 team blocks with (13) for the sixth time this season and fourth match in a row. Over that four match span, Notre Dame is averaging 15.5 team blocks per contest. Against the Eagles, Goralski led the team with five blocks (including four solo) and Fletcher added two solo blocks and two block assists.
The Irish now have 133 team blocks on the season for an 11.1 average per match.
The team will remain on the East Coast for Sunday’s match against Connecticut (2 p.m.) and will be looking for their fifth BIG EAST Conference victory of the year.