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Ashley Johnson
Brian Drumm

JAGUARS STAND AND DELIVER 3-2 WIN OVER OAKLAND

IUPUI tallies 11 blocks versus top-digging team in Summit League

10/9/2009 10:28:34 PM

Box Score | Box Score (.pdf)

ROCHESTER, Mich. -- The IUPUI volleyball team took down Oakland at their own game Friday night at the Athletics Center O'Rena, out-blocking OU on their way to a come-from-behind 3-2 win.  Ashley Johnson posted one of the best matches of her career, finishing the night with 15 kills and 7 blocks in IUPUI's 25-15, 24-26, 15-25, 25-19, 15-10 win.

IUPUI (13-5, 5-3 Summit) entered the match as the 10th-ranked team in The Summit League when it came to blocking, whereas Oakland (12-4, 5-3 Summit) was tops in the conference in blocking.  However, the Jaguars stood tallest at the net, coming up with 11 team blocks to best the 7 of the Grizzlies.

In a match where the teams traded haymakers throughout, Kalyse Reimbold led IUPUI with 20 kills to go along with Johnson's 15.  Johnson, the senior middle hitter, hit .520 for the match.  Defensively, the Jaguars finished with 77 digs, led by Rachel Holmes's 17. 

Both Reimbold and Danielle Goodnight posted double-doubles in the victory, with Reimbold tallying 14 digs, while Goodnight finished the night with 36 assists and 15 digs.  Shari Bernhardt finished the night as the fourth Jaguar with double-digit digs, recording 14 on the night.

It was the Jaguars who landed the first blow of the match, racing out to a 6-2 lead on the back of two kills from Reimbold and one from Holmes.  Reimbold's second kill early in the set prompted Oakland to burn a timeout, but IUPUI did not relent in their attack, keeping the Grizzlies at bay the entire set.

Leading 19-13, the Jaguars used the strong serve of Bernhardt to put the set out of reach, using kills from Lindsey Weber and Monica Suding to push their lead to nine; a Bernhardt ace increased the lead to 10 for the first time in the set at 23-13.  Two OU errors gave IUPUI first blood in the match.

Having taken a shot to open the match, it was Oakland's turn to respond in the second set, as they snapped an 8-8 tie with three straight points, forcing Steve Payne to burn a timeout.  The 75-second break did little to slow the Grizzlies' momentum, as IUPUI's deficit soon grew to six at 17-11, prompting Payne to take his second timeout of the set.

Though Oakland took the next three points to move ahead, 20-11, the Jaguars soon found their rhythm.  A Reimbold kill got IUPUI rolling, and kills from Reimbold, Goodnight and Johnson helped the Jags cut their deficit to 21-16.  After the Grizzlies picked up a point, Johnson followed with another kill, and after consecutive OU errors, the score was 22-19 in favor of the home team, but momentum clearly favored the visitors.

The timeout did little to slow IUPUI's momentum, as Holmes and Goodnight sandwiched kills around a Grizzlies' attack error, knotting the set at 22.  A block by Johnson and Holmes completed a 12-2 run for IUPUI, as Oakland used a kill by Adrienne Leone to pick up the sideout and re-tie the set.

A Jaguar error gave OU the set point, but a Johnson kill ensured extra points in the set; however, the set would have just one, as the Grizzlies took the next two points to grab the set and tie the match at a set apiece.

Seemingly still stinging from their second-set loss, the Jaguars were rolled by Oakland in the third set, 25-15.  The Grizzlies jumped out to a 9-4 lead, using back-to-back aces to cause an early IUPUI timeout.  Following the same script as the second set, OU continued to build their lead, stretching it to seven at 14-7 to force a quick second timeout from IUPUI.

However, there would be no comeback from the Jaguars in the third set, as the closest they came the rest of the way was six points, immediately following IUPUI's second timeout.

Having absorbed two strong punches from Oakland, it was the Jaguars who came out swinging in the fourth set, as Johnson created three straight points for IUPUI to snap a 5-5 tie and set a tone for the remainder of the set.  The middle hitter sandwich one her three solo blocks around two kills to force Oakland to burn an early timeout.

Johnson's energy seemed to carry over to the rest of the Jaguars, as Suding, Reimbold and Dana Gardner came up with three straight kills to turn an 11-8 lead into a commanding 14-8 advantage.  The run caused the Grizzlies to take their second and final timeout of the set.

IUPUI would need the six-point lead as Oakland countered with three straight points to slice the Jags' lead in half at 18-15.  Coming out of IUPUI's subsequent timeout, the Grizzlies picked up two more points to close within a point, but Johnson came through again, putting the Jaguars out front 19-17.

Lauran Thompson followed the sideout with a service ace to give IUPUI breathing room, and an Oakland attack error pushed the Jagaurs' lead back to four at 21-17.    A kill from Reimbold and a block by Suding and Goodnight brought IUPUI within two points of forcing a fifth set, and when Goodnight came up with a set-clinching kill, the Jaguars were headed to their third five-set match of 2009.

Undefeated in their previous two five-set matches (Western Kentucky, Butler), the Jaguars wasted little time reversing course from an early 6-5 deficit to run off three straight points and force Oakland into a timeout.  A Leone attack error knotted the set and Johnson came up with her third solo block of the match to give the Jags the lead.  Thompson capped the run with a kill to put IUPUI up, 8-6.

Though Oakland tied the set at 8, the veteran Jaguars refused to buckle, as another Thompson kill put IUPUI out front at 9-8.  Johnson and Goodnight stepped up with a block and Reimbold followed it with a kill to put the Jags up three. 

After Oakland picked up the sideout, Johnson recorded her 15th kill of the set, followed by Reimbold's 18th of the night, which pushed IUPUI's lead to 13-9, forcing Oakland to take their final timeout of the night.  Reimbold tallied kill number 19 coming out of the break to create a match-point opportunity for the Jaguars.  It was Reimbold who cashed in the opportunity on IUPUI's second match point, as her 20th kill clinched the match for the Jaguars.

IUPUI will take on IPFW on Saturday, Oct. 10, as they look to pick up the weekend sweep on the road.  The match will begin at 7 p.m. ET from the Hilliard Gates Sports Center and can be followed via live stats by clicking here.
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