MOUNT VERNON, Ohio (9-1-2011) - A large,
boisterous crowd and the friendly confines
of the Physical Education Center proved to
be just the right combination as the Mount
Vernon Nazarene University women's
volleyball team snapped a four-match losing
skid and swept Lake Erie College 25-19,
25-21, 25-12 in non-conference action on
Thursday night.
The Lady Cougars
(5-4) fell behind midway through the first
set, but they were able to rally back for
the win and gain the momentum that would
propel them through the rest of the match
with a partisan crowd of 652 fans cheering
them on. Sophomore middle hitter Kendra
Votaw led MVNU with 11 kills and seven digs
versus the NCAA Division II Storm (0-1),
while junior middle hitter Haley Nofziger
smashed seven kills. Junior setter Lauren
Percival handed out 20 assists, and
sophomore defensive specialist Morgan
Pridemore served up three aces. Junior
libero Kaylee Hewitt led the team with eight
digs, and sophomore middle hitter and
freshman right-side hitter Molly Gerber each
finished with four kills.
"It was
great to have such a supportive crowd to
help us rally back in the first set," said
MVNU coach Paul Swanson as his team snapped
the program's longest losing streak since
the Lady Cougars lost five in a row at the
end of the 1990 campaign. "We played better
in the back row and cut down on our errors.
There is still plenty of room for
improvement, but this was a step in the
right direction."
"It was nice to
have Kelly out there for the first time this
year," said Swanson of Mast, who had missed
the first eight matches with an injury. "She
will give us another option when (junior
middle hitter) Gina (Porto) is able to
return from her injury. We need to keep
cutting down on our errors and continue to
improve our back row play."
MVNU will
take the weekend off and will return to
action on Wednesday when the Lady Cougars
travel to Bethel (Ind.) College for their
first-ever match in the Mid-Central College
Conference. The action is slated to get
under way at 7 p.m.
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