Bulldogs Return Home to Challenge Dartmouth and Harvard
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NEW HAVEN, Conn. – After knocking off Cornell and
Columbia in its first Ivy League road weekend to improve to 4-1 in
Ancient Eight action, the Yale volleyball team returns to the
familiar confines of the John J. Lee Amphitheater to host Dartmouth
and Harvard in another crucial weekend of league competition. The
Bulldogs, who are 14-2 overall in 2009, will challenge Big Green on
Friday, Oct. 23 at 7 p.m. and will meet perennial rival Harvard on
Oct. 24 for a 4 p.m. contest. Live stats and Yale All-Access
streaming video will be available for both matches.
Last Time Out
Yale rebounded from its first Ivy League loss of the season with
road wins at Cornell and Columbia. Freshman Kerry Clavadetscher
earned Ivy League Rookie of the Week honors for her performance
against Big Red and the Lions, while sophomore Bridget Hearst, who
crushed an amazing 27 kills in four sets at Columbia, was named to
the Ivy League Weekly Honor Roll.
This Is Our House
Yale is 8-1 in home matches this season. The Bulldogs went 9-1 in
the Elm City last season, including a 6-1 home record against Ivy
League competition. Only Penn has defeated Yale at the John J. Lee
Amphitheater in each of the last two seasons.
Getting Back on Track
Including the sweep at Cornell on Oct. 16, Yale has won seven
straight matches following a loss. The Bulldogs were last defeated
in consecutive matches in September of 2008 at the Penn State
Classic against the eventual-National Champion Lady Lions and Saint
Louis, a team that finished last season ranked at No. 21 in the
nation. Yale’s last three wins following a defeat have been
3-0 sweeps.
Scouting Big Green (Oct. 23 – 7 p.m.)
After dropping its last three contests, all league matches,
Dartmouth enters the weekend at 7-9 overall and 3-3 in Ivy League
play. The Big Green offense is led by 3.55 kills per set from
Madeline Baird, the fourth-highest total in the Ancient Eight.
Kendall Houston runs the offense to the tune of 7.57 assists per
frame, and Amber Bryant ranks eighth in the Ivy League with a
team-best 3.43 digs per set. As a team, Dartmouth is fifth in
hitting percentage (.182), third in aces (1.42 per set), fourth in
opponent hitting percentage (.187) and sixth in blocks (1.69 per
set). In the non-conference season, Yale and Big Green both hosted
and swept Quinnipiac and Central Connecticut State.
Bulldogs vs. Big Green
Including a pair of sweeps in 2008, Yale leads the all-time series
with Big Green, 32-8. Coach Appleman is 10-2 all-time against
Dartmouth and has never dropped a match to Big Green in New Haven.
Yale, the winner of the last three meetings between the two squads,
is 12-3 against Big Green in matches played at the John J. Lee
Amphitheater. The Bulldogs boast the longest winning streak in the
series, taking the first 16 all-time matchups from 1987-1996.
Dartmouth followed that stretch with its longest winning streak, a
four-match run from 1997-98.
Scouting the Crimson (Oct. 24 – 4 p.m.)
Currently sitting at 7-10 overall and 3-3 in the Ivy League,
Harvard travels to Brown on Friday night before visiting the John
J. Lee Amphitheater for Saturday’s contest against the
Bulldogs. The Crimson lost at Penn on Saturday to snap a
three-match winning streak. Harvard boasts the Ivy League’s
most efficient attacker in Sandra Lynne Fryhofer, who is swinging
at a clip of .308. Anne Carroll Ingersoll, the leading blocker in
the Ancient Eight with 1.10 blocks per set, is hitting .298 with a
team-best 2.83 kills per frame. Lily Durwood performs setting
duties for the Crimson, piling up 9.35 assists per set, and
Christine Wu lands at third in the Ivy League with 5.02 digs per
set to lead Harvard defensively. The Crimson ranks fourth in the
league with a .183 hitting percentage and is last in the Ivy League
in opponent hitting percentage (.223). The Cantabs are also fourth
in blocks (1.85 per set) and service aces (1.32 per set).
Bulldogs vs. Crimson
Entering the 46th all-time meeting between Yale and Harvard, the
Bulldogs hold a 31-14 lead in the series. The Bulldogs are 14-3 at
home all-time against the Crimson, and Coach Appleman holds an 11-2
career record against Yale’s historic rival. Yale’s
current 10-match winning streak, which dates back to 2004, is the
longest by either team in the series. The longest winning streaks
for the Cantabs are a pair of three-match stretches from 1989-90
and 2002-03.
Around the Ivy League
The other half of the Ancient Eight will be at Penn and Princeton
this weekend, as the Quakers and Tigers host Cornell and Columbia.
Penn enters the weekend atop the Ivy League standings at 5-0. This
weekend marks the halfway point of the Ivy League season, as every
team will have played each other at least once after
Saturday’s slate of matches.
An Instant Impact
After playing an integral part in the Bulldogs’ 2-0 road
weekend at Cornell and Columbia, Kerry Clavadetscher has been
recognized by the Ivy League as its Rookie of the Week. The
freshman setter, who averaged 12.86 assists per set in seven frames
of action last weekend, has now earned the distinction in two of
the past three weeks. For the season, Clavadetscher has been the
second-most prolific setter in the Ivy League with an average of
10.50 assists per frame. The Seattle, Wash. native has also
contributed 2.12 digs per set, 19 blocks, 17 kills and six aces in
42 sets of action.
The Hits Kept on Coming
Sophomore Bridget Hearst turned in a remarkable performance in
Yale’s four-set win at Columbia on Saturday. Hearst tallied a
match-best 27 kills on 35 swings with just four errors for a
stellar .657 hitting percentage. Her 27 kills marked the most by a
Yale player since Shannon Farrell ’07 totaled 31 kills in
five sets against Cornell in the 2004 Ivy League Playoff. Hearst
was recognized for her performance as a member of the Ivy League
Weekly Honor Roll.
On Crusey Control
One of the most dominant players in the Ivy League for the past
three seasons, senior outside hitter Alexis Crusey is currently
averaging 2.94 kills and 3.38 digs per frame, ranking at ninth in
the Ancient Eight in both categories. The three-time first team
All-Ivy honoree ranks fifth in Yale history with 1,174 kills and
ninth in digs with 1,099 entering this weekend. Against Ivy League
competition, Crusey ranks ninth in blocks with 0.83 per set. Prior
to the Ivy League season, Crusey grabbed All-Tournament Team honors
at both the Yale Invitational and the American Volleyball Classic
and took home Most Valuable Player laurels at the Yale Classic. Her
performance at the Yale Classic also merited Ivy League Player of
the Week honors.
The Wizard
Junior libero Kelly Ozurovich reached a milestone in the Oct. 2
sweep of Brown, as she tallied her 1,000th career dig. Ozurovich,
an All-Ivy honoree in both of her previous seasons at Yale,
currently leads the Ivy League and ranks fourth in all of Division
I with 5.69 digs per set this season. A two-time Ivy League Weekly
Honor Roll selection this season, Ozurovich currently sits at 10th
all-time in Yale history with 1,090 digs.
Cat Power
Senior outside hitter Cat Dailey, the reigning Ivy League Player of
the Year, has picked up where she left off in 2008, as she
currently leads the Ancient Eight in kills with 4.28 per set,
including a 4.44 kills per set average against Ivy League
competition. Dailey is also in the Ivy League top 10 in hitting
percentage (fourth, .294), service aces (fourth, 0.33 per set) and
digs (10th, 3.33 per set). She was named Ivy League Player of the
Week in the first week of action this season after hitting at a
sizzling .487 clip, notching 39 kills on 78 attempts with just one
error (4.88 kills per set) en route to being named the Most
Valuable Player of the Yale Invitational.
Hey, I Know You
There will be a familiar face on the bench for the Harvard Crimson
on Saturday, as Yale graduate Shannon Farrell ’07 patrols the
sidelines for the Cantabs in her first season as an assistant
coach. Farrell was a three-time All-Ivy first team honoree
(2004-06) and was twice selected by Coach Appleman as the
Bulldogs’ team MVP (2004, 2006). She ranks seventh all-time
at Yale in kills (1,099), 10th in career hitting percentage (.225)
and 12th (1,003) in career digs.
The Ministry of Defense
As potent as the Yale offense has been thus far in 2009, the
Bulldogs’ defense has certainly done its part in guiding the
squad to its 14-2 record. Yale currently leads all Ivy League teams
in digs (18.65 per set), blocks (2.31 per set) and opponent hitting
percentage (.129).
Homecoming Queen
Playing in her home state of New Jersey, senior Laurel Johnson hit
a commanding .424 (29-4-59) as the Bulldogs swept a trio of matches
on Sept. 18-19 to win the Seton Hall Invitational. The Cherry Hill,
N.J. native earned All-Tournament and Ivy League Player of the Week
honors on the back of averaging 3.22 kills per set and amassing a
tournament-best 1.22 blocks per set.
Hit Me With Your Best Shot
Yale’s straight-set win over Binghamton on Sept. 26 marked
the Bulldogs’ third victory this season against an opponent
that was selected to win its conference in the preseason
coaches’ poll. The Bearcats, representing the America East
Conference, join Fairfield from the Metro Atlantic Athletic
Conference and the Patriot League preseason favorite, American
University, on the Bulldogs’ hit list.
Road Dogs
The Bulldogs are 4-0 in true road contests this season, and 6-1 in
all matches away from the John J. Lee Amphitheater in 2009. Yale is
in the midst of a 10-match winning streak in Ivy League road
matches, having not lost on an Ancient Eight foe’s home court
since Nov. 10, 2007 at Princeton.
Starting Strong
Yale’s 12-1 start to the 2009 campaign was the best in
program history. The 2005 Bulldogs, who previously owned the best
start in Yale history, started 11-1 en route to a 20-4 (11-3 Ivy)
finish. Yale’s 10-1 tally in non-conference contests this
season signifies the best non-league mark for a Yale squad since
2001, when the non-conference schedule was shortened in favor of a
14-match Ivy League slate.
High School Heroines
PrepVolleyball.com, the Internet’s first and only website
dedicated to covering club and high school volleyball on a national
level, selected the Yale Class of 2013 as a High Honorable Mention
in its annual rankings of the nation’s top recruiting
classes, as determined by a panel of over 100 collegiate coaches.
The Yale class of 2013 consists of Anya Cekauskas, Kerry
Clavadetscher, Julia Cortopassi and Haley Wessels. Two of the four
Ivy League recruiting classes to ever receive High Honorable
Mention status have been Yale squads. The Bulldogs’ Class of
2010 (current seniors Alexis Crusey, Laurel Johnson, Julia
Mailander and Lydia Mailander) also earned the distinction in
2006.
Trend Setters
Yale is the only Ivy League volleyball program to notch a win in
the NCAA Championships. The 2004 Bulldogs, the first Ancient Eight
squad to host an NCAA Championship match, knocked off Albany in
five sets to tally the first postseason win in conference history.
The 2008 Yale team then defeated Ohio in the University Park (Pa.)
Subregional to become the first Ivy League team to win an NCAA
Championship match away from its home court.
State Troopers
Including the sweeps of Fairfield, Central Connecticut State and
Quinnipiac this season, the Bulldogs are 96-29 all-time against
opponents from the state of Connecticut. Yale’s most frequent
opponent from the Nutmeg State has been the University of Hartford,
against which the Bulldogs are 21-3. The University of Connecticut
has had the most success against the Bulldogs among in-state rivals
with a 12-4 advantage in the series. Head Coach Erin Appleman is
11-2 versus the Constitution State, with both losses coming at the
hands of the Huskies.
Beaten By the Best
The Bulldogs’ record-setting 2008 season ended in the NCAA
Championship Second Round at the hands of No. 1 Penn State. The
match, which was held on the Lady Lions’ home court, was the
34th consecutive sweep for the eventual national champions, who
dropped only two sets all season en route to a 38-0 finish. In
total, five of Yale’s six losses in 2008 came at the hands of
teams that advanced to the NCAA Championship tournament.
On the Court and in the Classroom
The American Volleyball Coaches Association has announced that the
Bulldogs are among the recipients of the AVCA Team Academic Award.
The award has been presented annually since 1993 to collegiate and
high school volleyball teams that have displayed excellence in the
classroom during the school year by maintaining at least a 3.30
cumulative team grade-point average.
Dig, Set, Tweet!
The Yale volleyball team has a new home in cyberspace this season,
courtesy of Twitter, at http://www.twitter.com/YaleVolleyball.
The Bulldogs’ Twitter page will feature news, information and
live updates during most road matches.
2009 Schedule Notes
The 2009 schedule consists of 13 home matches and 12 road
matches…The Bulldogs’ non-conference slate includes
four opponents to whom they have never lost (Binghamton,
Quinnipiac, Seton Hall, Virginia Tech), and an opponent they have
never beaten (American)…Colorado and New Jersey Institute of
Technology are both first-time opponents for Yale…Under
Coach Appleman (2003-present), Yale has only played five of its
2009 non-conference opponents (Binghamton, Central Connecticut
State, Georgetown, Hofstra, Quinnipiac). The Bulldogs are a
combined 7-0 in those matches…Hofstra (Sept. 18) is the only
repeat opponent from the 2008 non-conference schedule…Yale
will only play two matches at the American Volleyball Classic
(American and Virginia Tech). The fourth team at the event, NJIT,
will challenge the Bulldogs the following weekend at the Seton Hall
Tournament… Last season, Yale and Brown played a
home-and-home series to open Ivy League play. This year, the series
is split as the first and last matches of the Ancient Eight
schedule…The Bulldogs will play three in-state opponents
(Central Connecticut State, Fairfield, Quinnipiac), the most Nutmeg
State foes they have challenged since 2005. Yale did not face any
Connecticut squads in 2007 or 2008.
Team Up to Fight Cancer
In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the volleyball team has
combined efforts with the field hockey and women’s soccer
teams this October for the first-ever “Team Up to Fight
Cancer” initiative. The teams sold t-shirts and collected
donations at home athletic events throughout the weekend of Oct. 2
to benefit the Yale Cancer Center, with the net proceeds being
designated for breast cancer research.
Beach Blanket Broadcast
The Bulldogs relocated their morning practice on Friday, Aug. 28
from the familiar confines of the John J. Lee Amphitheater to
scenic Hammonasset Beach in Madison, Conn. The defending Ivy League
Champions hit the sand at Meig’s Point with the crew of the
Fox 61 Morning News as a part of the “Zip Trip”
segment, which highlights Connecticut-based attractions. Coach
Appleman and members of the Yale team fielded questions from anchor
Jeff Valin, while host Logan Byrnes took a few practice swings with
the team.
Round Two
Next weekend, the Bulldogs begin a four-match road swing with Ivy
League contests at Penn and Princeton. Penn, currently leading the
Ivy League at 5-0, handed Yale its only Ancient Eight loss on Oct.
17 in New Haven. The Quakers hosts the Bulldogs on Friday, Oct. 30
at 7 p.m., and the Tigers from Princeton will challenge Yale on
Oct. 31 at 4 p.m. Both contests are slated to feature live stats
(courtesy of the home teams) and will have live Twitter updates
throughout at http://www.twitter.com/YaleVolleyball.
Information
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report filed by Drew M. Kingsley, Yale Sports Publicity