Dartmouth Women's Volleyball Loses to Princeton

Saturday, October 17

Hanover, N.H.

4:00 PM

Dartmouth College

PRINCETON

Dartmouth Women's Volleyball Loses to Princeton

10/17/2009 5:45:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

By: Dartmouth

HANOVER, N.H. - The Dartmouth women's volleyball team lost its second match of the weekend with a 3-1 loss to Princeton on Saturday in Leede Arena. Game scores were 18-25, 26-24, 13-25, 13-25. The loss drops the Big Green to 7-9 overall, 3-3 in the league while the Tigers moved to 4-12, 2-3 Ivy.

Madeline Baird (Austin, Texas) finished with 10 kills and 11 digs for the only double-double for Dartmouth. Alissa Santa Maria (Yorba Linda, Calif.) also had 11 kills while Jessie Hartman (Woodside, Calif.) was tops with 14. Santa Maria was also the high setter for the Big Green with 22.

The Tigers had four players in double-figure kills ans Sheena Donohue recorded a double-double with 12 kills and 22 digs.

Princeton took an early in the first set of the day before Dartmouth came back to take over the lead behind the serving of Santa Maria. Playing point-for-point over the next couple neither side seemed to gain the upper hand. The Tigers took their biggest lead of the set at 12-8 before the Big Green was forced to burn a timeout. A Dartmouth error and a Princeton kill gave the Tigers a 14-9 lead as the visitors began to sway the momentum to its side. The Big Green mounted a comeback behind the serving of Morgan Covington (Katy, Texas) as the home team erased the five-point Princeton lead. Several Dartmouth errors allowed the visitors to get the lead back, going up by as much as eight before closing the door for the victory.

The Tigers kept the momentum going, taking the lead in the second set. Looking to erase a four-point Princeton lead, Covington had a huge kill for sideout and another for a point as the Big Green found itself down by two. A Covington, Baird block gave Dartmouth another point at 8-9. A block by Annie Villanueva (Santa Barbara, Calif.) and Lexie Campbell (Solana Beach, Calif.) tied the set at 10 before another kill by Covington tied it again at 15. The two then played point-for-point as the Big Green did not allow Princeton to take the lead again. A solo block by Villanueva tied things up as the Tigers took a timeout. Coming back from the break another solo block by Villanueva, followed by a kill for the sophomore gave Dartmouth a two point lead at 20-18. A kill by Kendall Houston (Austin, Texas) put the home team up by three as Princeton used another timeout. A huge kill by Villanueva after the timeout got the crowd on its feet but the Tigers would not go quietly as Sheena Donahue killed the ball to move Princeton to within one, 22-23. The Tigers tied the set at 24-all but a kill by Campbell and a Tigers error allowed the Big Green to take the victory and tie the match.

Like the first two sets before it was Princeton that took the early lead. Down by five Dartmouth took a timeout to regroup but the Tigers came out and increased the lead to seven, 10-3. With Princeton up, 12-3 head coach Ann Marie Larese took another timeout as the crowd tried to encourage the Big Green. Dartmouth was never able to get closer than five as the Tigers ran away with the set to take the 2-1 lead.

Princeton played the fourth like the previous three, taking an early lead and extending it, going up by six before the Big Green used its first timeout. Down 11-4 Dartmouth continued to make errors as it appeared the Tigers were going to win the fourth set easily. A Villanueva solo block and serving by Houston moved the Big Green to within four but that was the closest they got. Several kills by co-captain MacGregor kept Dartmouth hanging around but it was never enough.

The Big Green will be back in action next weekend traveling to Brown and Yale on Oct. 23 and 24.