Nov. 10, 2007

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NEW HAVEN, Conn.--The Yale volleyball team knew going into this weekend that its chances at earning a share of the Ivy League title were slim. The Bulldogs (15-6, 9-3 Ivy) were eliminated before they even took the court when Princeton knocked off Brown, 3-0, but they still went out and spoiled Penn's fun, eliminating the Quakers (16-8, 9-3) with a 30-25, 30-27, 26-30, 30-19 victory Friday night at the John J. Lee Amphitheater. Princeton is 12-0 in Ivy League play and cannot be caught.

Penn built an early 5-1 lead in game one, but the Bulldogs chipped away and eventually pulled within 12-10. The Quakers extended their advantage to 17-13 before Yale responded with a 10-1 run to take a 23-18 edge. That run essentially put the game away, as Penn was unable to pull any closer than three the rest of the game. Kali Nelson's kill sealed a 30-25 game one win for the Bulldogs.

Yale took the early lead in game two, breaking open a 3-3 tie with a 4-0 run that was highlighted by two Julia Mailander service aces. The Bulldogs led for most of the game, opening up a 25-19 advantage on a Julia Mailander kill. Penn, however, rattled off six straight points on Madison Wojciechowski's serve to force a 25-25 tie. Yale regained the lead on an Allison Kaptur kill, and took the game by a 30-27 count.

Game three featured four ties, but Penn was in control much of the way. The Quakers opened up a 7-3 lead before the Bulldogs battled back to force an 8-8 tie. Penn again jumped in front, 12-9, but Yale was again able to tie it at 15-15. From there the Quakers took command, scoring three straight points to go up 18-15. The squads swapped one or two points a side the rest of the way, as Penn won the game, 30-26, to send the match into the fourth.

After the teams played three closely-contested games, the Bulldogs dominated game four. Yale spotted the Quakers the first two points of the game before rattling off eight in a row on Nelson's serve. Nelson had back-to-back aces during the run. Penn put together a 5-1 run that turned a 17-10 deficit into an 18-14 Yale lead, but the Bulldogs responded with a 4-2 spurt that ran the lead back to six at 22-16. Penn wasn't able to pull any closer again, and Lydia Mailander's ace capped the 30-19 win that put away Yale's eighth straight victory over the Quakers. After failing to break .169 hitting in the first three games, Yale hit .300 (16 kills, four errors, 40 attacks) in game four.

"I was pleased with our effort," Head Coach Erin Appleman said. "It felt good to be at home. We fought hard, and it was nice to have so many people step up."

Julia Mailander tallied a career-high 20 kills and added 15 digs. Alexis Crusey chipped in with a 15-kill, 18-dig double-double. Kristen Wilk notched 13 kills for the Bulldogs. Ally Mendenhall dished out 56 assists and added a career-high 21 digs. Kelly Ozurovich recorded a match-high 29 digs. Yale hit .170 (66-29-218) in the match.

Anna Shlimak and Laura Black each posted a double-double for the Quakers. Shlimak tallied 14 kills and 19 digs, while Black notched 11 kills and 16 digs. Linda Zhang added 41 assists, 12 digs and five blocks. Wojciechowski recorded 28 digs and Julia Swanson registered 20, as the Quakers out-dug the Bulldogs 104-100. Penn hit .110 (50-29-191) as a team.

The Bulldogs host the Ivy champion Tigers (20-3, 12-0 Ivy) Saturday at 4 p.m. at the John J. Lee Amphitheater in their final home match of the season. Princeton beat Yale 3-1 when the teams met in New Jersey and has won three straight against the Bulldogs. Seniors Morgan Hume, Maribeth Martens, Nelson and Nicole Perkins will be honored prior to the match.

Report filed by Joe Clifford, Yale Sports Publicity