September 11, 2010

BULLDOGS SWEEP THROUGH BRYANT INVITATIONAL, EARN FIRST-EVER WIN OVER BCS OPPONENT

VIDEO: FINAL POINT OF WIN OVER BOSTON COLLEGE

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – The Bryant University volleyball team couldn't have asked for a better weekend.

With a 3-1 win over Holy Cross and a pulse-racing 3-2 victory over Boston College Saturday, the Bulldogs (8-3) stayed perfect at the 2010 Bryant Invitational, closing out the tournament with a 4-0 record while placing three on the all-tournament team.

The trio was headlined by tournament MVP Maria Scocca (Melrose, Mass.), whose 31 kills on Saturday and 70 for the two-day invitational paced the Bulldogs. She was joined on the all-tournament team by classmate Jazmin Stoner (Durango, Colo.) and sophomore setter Jadith Lorenzo (Lawrence, Mass.), who both put up double-double efforts in Bryant's five-set thriller over BC in the closing contest, marking the team's biggest win to date and its first victory over an ACC school in program history.

Stoner led the Bulldogs in the nightcap, posting 21 kills along with 17 digs, but it was the four points she collected in a crucial fifth set that stood as her brightest moment, giving her side a 15-5 set win and the 3-2 victory in the match. Lorenzo collected her fourth-straight double-double against the Eagles (5-5), achieving the feat in each match throughout the Bryant Invitational, with a contest-high 51 assists to go with 13 digs. The numbers also marked her eighth double-double of the season (11 matches).

Not to be left out of the spotlight, Scocca's 18 kills against BC and 13 more against Holy Cross (4-8) Saturday were just a part of the reason she was awarded Most Valuable Player honors, also chipping in 11 blocks and five aces in two matches on the day and boasting 14 and 13 on the tournament, respectively.

The host's first match of the day saw the Bulldogs trump a strong Holy Cross side 3-1 on the back of 13 kills apiece from Stoner and Scocca and the third-straight double-double from Lorenzo, who posted a match-best 31 assists and added 10 digs.

Three aces in the span of four serves from Scocca gave the Bulldogs a 16-14 edge in the first set, a game they would take 25-18. Bryant continued to produce quality play into the second set, dominating the game for a 25-11 victory, led by Stoner's seven kills and .667 attack percentage. As a team, the Bulldogs would hit .500 in the second to take a 2-0 match lead.

Holy Cross returned the favor in the third, limiting the Bulldogs to just 13 points in the win. Megan Lynch's four kills led the Crusaders in the frame. But it was the Black and Gold who got the final word in, defeating Holy Cross, 25-17, for the final 3-1 victory. Scocca's four kills and four blocks (1 solo, 3 assists) were both set bests, while Lorenzo collected seven of the Bulldogs' eight assists.

Rookie Nicole Percz (Palos Verdes Estates, Calif.) put forth a stellar effort of her own in the match, knocking down 10 kills with a pair of blocks, while fellow newcomer Kendall Gaffney (Colorado Springs, Colo.) chipped in eight kills with a trio of stuffs. Senior Robyn Gardner's 17 digs led both sides in the matchup as Bryant outblocked its opponent, 13-4, to stay undefeated in the 2010 Bryant Invitational.

The Bulldogs would close out their race to perfection in the nightcap against the Eagles, outlasting their ACC foes to the five-set victory to finish out the tournament with a perfect 4-0 mark.

But the Black and Gold seemed outmatched in the opening set, dropping a quick 25-16 decision to fall behind in the contest. It wouldn't last long, as the hosts rode seven kills from Stoner to a 25-22 victory in set two to knot the score at 1-1.

Bryant fell behind again in the third, battling, but ultimately coming up short in a 25-20 defeat to force a do-or-die fourth set, where the home side got the set back with a 25-20 victory of its own to tie the game again, this time at 2-2.

But the Bulldogs wouldn't trail in the final set, shutting the Eagles' offense down and riding strong showings from Stoner, Lorenzo and Scocca to the eventual 3-2 match win. Lorenzo would record double-digit assists in three of the match's five frames, including 15 helpers in the second frame alone.

Manhattan College would finish the tournament just behind the Bulldogs with a 2-1 record, while Holy Cross and Boston College each went 1-2 on the weekend. Navy ended the trip 0-3. BC's Brennan Clark and Tsvetelina Dureva, Manhattan's Diane Strutner, Holy Cross's Megan Lynch and Navy's Erin Fortner all joined Scocca, Stoner and Lorenzo on the all-tournament team.

The Bulldogs have just two days off before resuming 2010 action, as they play host to Dartmouth on Tuesday, Sept. 14 at 6 p.m.