Pitt
Marquette
Harper Leads the Panthers In Season Finale
11/19/2010 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Nov. 19, 2010
PITTSBURGH--Junior Imani Harper led the team in kills, as the University of Pittsburgh women's volleyball team was eliminated from the Big East Championship race with a 3-0 loss to third-seeded Marquette, this evening at Fitzgerald Field House. The Panthers fell in straight sets with scores of 25-19, 25-21 and 25-16.
Harper led the Panthers with nine kills. She also chipped in four digs, two blocks and an ace. Sophomore Alexa Campbell added eight kills, while junior Kiesha Leggs tallied six kills and a block.
Defensively, three Panthers recorded six digs, including sophomore Margy Acton, senior Melanie Feldman and senior Amy Town.
The Panthers won the first point of the match when senior Allyson Hodnik set classmate Rachel Kalberer for a kill. Later, the Panthers trailed 16-8 when Kalberer earned back-to-back kills. Marquette would answer with a 3-2 rally to force a Pitt timeout at 19-12.
As play continued, Campbell earned one of her four kills of the set to make it a five-point game at 23-18. Pitt would then hold the Golden Eagles with a sideout from Harper, but a Pitt attack error gave Marquette the first set at 25-19.
Harper led the Panthers with five kills in the first set, while Acton tallied four digs.
Later in the second set, Harper recorded Pitt's first block of the match with a solo stuff on Marquette's middle. Next, Harper also made it a one-point game, 6-5, with an ace. Campbell then knotted the set at six with a kill. Town followed with a kill on the next serve to give the Panthers a one-point advantage at 7-6.
Keeping the set close, Acton recorded an ace for Pitt to tie the contest at 11. The Panthers and Golden Eagles remained deadlocked through the 14th point of the game. However, a Marquette 5-2 run would push them ahead 19-16.
Following a Pitt timeout, Kalberer recorded a powerful kill to pull the Panthers within two, 19-17. Later, Harper kept it at two points with a kill over the middle, 22-20. However, Marquette would earn three points off the next four volleys and take the middle set at 25-21.
Hodnik recorded an assist on all 10 of the Panthers kills in the middle set.
In the final set, Leggs and Town recorded one of Pitt's four blocks. The Panthers would win the blocking battle in the third set when Harper and Town combined on a block that excited the crowd and pulled the Panthers within three at 13-10.
Marquette would regain the momentum with a 4-1 run, forcing a Pitt timeout at 17-11. Hodnik gave Pitt a sideout when she found Harper on the next volley. The Golden Eagles would go on another run and led 22-15 when Hodnik set Town for another kill. However, Marquette would close out the match on a 3-1 rally.
Leggs led Pitt with three kills in the third set, while Hodnik recorded another eight assists in the game.
Hodnik collected 31 assists on Pitt's 32 kills in the match.
Action resumes tomorrow, Nov. 20, as the semifinals of the Big East Championship resume at 1 p.m. with top-seeded Cincinnati versus No. 5 seed Notre Dame.
