Boston College
Notre Dame
Volleyball Shuts Out Notre Dame
November 07, 2004 | Volleyball
Nov. 7, 2004
The Boston College volleyball team shocked Notre Dame (14-7, 6-1) this afternoon at the Joyce Center in South Bend, Ind. The Eagles shut out the Fighting Irish 3-0 to earn their eighteenth win of the season. BC's win hands the Fighting Irish their first 3-0 loss in a home conference match since 1984.
BC (18-11, 4-4) came out on fire in the opening game. The Eagles took an early 7-2 edge after a kill by Abigail Hasebroock. The freshman recorded eight kills and five block assists in the match. BC continued to extend its lead throughout the game. The Eagles went on a 5-0 run to give them a 21-8 advantage. Dorota Niemczewska put down one of her seven kills on the day to put BC up by 13. Verena Rost ended the game for the Eagles with her serve. The junior made two service aces in the opening game and helped lead BC to a 30-14 victory over Notre Dame.
BC never fell behind the Fighting Irish in game one thanks to its consistent attack. The team attacked the ball remarkably well for a hitting percentage of .464. The Eagles completed 14 kills on 28 attempts with only one attacking error.
In game two, Notre Dame jumped out to a 7-4 lead. The Eagles battled back to tie the game at eight. Shardai Davis charged the team with a kill, block solo, and block assist on the Eagle's four point run. Davis had an impressive game two defensively. She recorded four of her seven block assists and added two block solos in the game. The sophomore also looked strong offensively by completing eight kills on the day with one attacking error for an attacking percentage of .467.
The Eagles took at 9-8 lead on a Notre Dame attacking error and they would never trail from there. Katie Andersen pushed BC with seven kills in game two. The senior registered a match-high 11 kills and added eight digs in the match. The Eagles won the last five points of the match to give them a 30-22 advantage in the second game.
In the third game, Notre Dame took a quick 11-5 edge over BC. The Eagles would go on another five point unanswered run to bring them within one at 11-10. Kristin Whalley took over with her serve, while Davis put down a pass from Rost to bring the Eagles one point closer. Rost had a solid day both offensively and defensively. She controlled the offensive flow with 36 assists and made 11 digs defensively on the day.
The two teams would find themselves tied five more times in the game. Trailing 25-21, BC won four consecutive points to tie it up at 25. Leading 27-26, the Eagles would not relinquish their lead. Kelsey Johnson and Davis converted two key kills down the stretch to give BC a 30-28 victory in the final game. Johnson had a big day on offense with nine kills on 15 attempts for a hitting percentage of .500. The freshman also completed two service aces on the day.
The Eagles made only 10 attacking errors in the match, which helped them seal the victory over the Fighting Irish. For the match, the team completed 46 kills on 118 attempts for an attacking percentage of .305. Consistent defense also kept the Eagles in control of the match. Libero Allison Anderson recorded at match-high 21 digs, while Whalley added 11 digs on the day.
Prior to this match, the Fighting Irish had been 58-0 at home in regular-season BIG EAST play since joining the league in 1995. Notre Dame also had won 74 consecutive regular-season conference matches in the Joyce Center, dating back to 1990.
BC will continue play in the BIG EAST on Thursday night when it hosts Connecticut at 7 p.m. in Power Gym. The Eagles will close out their regular season at home on Sunday, November 14 at 2 p.m. against St. John's.
