College Volleyball
Rider University 3, Wagner College 0
LAWRENCEVILLE?Big crowd, clutch plays and Thompson accounts for almost 50 percent of the team's offense. If you think you are reading an article about last season's men's basketball team, well you're not. That Thompson (Jason) graduated to the NBA and this Thompson (Katelyn) is making her impression on the volleyball court.
Sophomore Katelyn Thompson (Tucson, Ariz./Catalina Foothills) had 17 kills and seven digs, accounting for almost 50 percent of the Bronc points as the Rider University volleyball team swept Wagner College (1-7) 3-0 on Wednesday night in the 2008 home opener. “We stayed mentally strong tonight and that's what won us the match,” said head coach Emily Ahlquist. “We made a lot of physical errors that we don't normally make.”
The match, which saw 23 ties and 14 lead changes, was won by the Broncs 25-14, 26-24, 26-24.
“We don't win tonight's match without the play of Katelyn Thompson or Tara Hansen,” said Ahlquist. “They both came out very aggressive and ready to play. They showed a solid effort on the floor tonight. They knew what they had to do and did it. Katelyn especially kept the defense off balance and on their toes. She made herself hard to defend and that's what a good offensive player does.”
“We pulled out the match night despite lacking some energy,” said Thompson who was an All-tournament selection at George Washington last weekend, averaging 2.33 kills per set and 0.33 blocks per set. “I tried to give it all that I had and get everyone pumped up.”
Also for Rider (7-3), sophomore Amanda Piccolini (St. Clairsville, Ohio/St. Clairsville) had a ?double-double' of 28 assists and 10 digs to go along with three service aces.
Junior Amy Jeary (Depew, N.Y./St. Mary's) had 20 digs with junior Tara Hansen (Beachwood/Toms River HS South) compiling17 digs and senior Lacey Johnson (Centennial, Colo./Grandview) chipping in with 14 digs.
“We know we can play better,” said Ahlquist. “We are a little banged up so some of what happened tonight was to be expected but we can play better and we better be prepared because the conference starts Friday night.”
Tied at five in the first set, Jeary served four straight points, giving Rider a 9-5 lead as the Broncs eventually put together a 10-3 run to put the set away by nine points.
The second set saw nine ties and four lead changes. Rider led 21-17 before Wagner used a 7-3 run to tie the set at 24. Two attack errors by the Seahawks gave Rider the two point win.
The third set saw more of the same with 11 ties and seven lead changes. Rider trailed 14-11 before a 6-1 run gave the Broncs a 17-15 lead. Wagner countered with a 4-0 run before Rider used a 3-0 run to take a 20-19 lead.
The Seahawks answered with a 3-0 run of their own before the Broncs tied the match at 22 on two kills by senior Lindsay Brant (Long Beach, N.Y./Long Beach), her only two kills of the night.
Trailing 24-23 and facing set point, Rider scored the next three in a row off two kills by Thompson, winning the set to clinch the match.
“Playing close sets will definitely help us in the next couple of weeks,” Thompson added. “Tonight we just had to dig a little deeper and find that extra effort inside of us.”
Rider has won five of its last six matches.
“It is extremely important that we battled through and won two sets that were decided by two points,” Ahlquist added. “You gain confidence by going through that pressure and you play to win instead of playing not to lose.”
Rider has now won seven of the eight sets this season that were decided by two points.
The Broncs have won 17 of the 19 matches all-time against Wagner, their former Northeast Conference rival.
After nine straight matches on the road, tonight was the 2008 home opener for Rider. “It was nice not to have to worry about travel, food, any of those things,” Ahlquist said. “We had a good crowd and it was nice to be home.”
“It was good to finally be home,” Thompson added. “Not having to travel and being able to sleep in our own beds was nice. It was fun to see people we know in the crowd and get their support.”
The Broncs travel to Fairfield on Friday night to open the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference schedule against the Stags at 7:00pm. “We're going into the match on a great note,” Ahlquist said. “Playing a quality team like Fairfield this early gives us a solid measuring stick to see where we are.”
“We have to play better than we did tonight to have a chance against Fairfield,” said Thompson. “It's another match that we are going to have to dig deep and leave it all on the court.”
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