Box Score

Photo Gallery (images by Evan Aczon)

Oakland, CA -- The Academy of Art women's volleyball team was riding a four-match and 11-set streak headed into tonight's tilt against the cross-bay Holy Names Hawks. Problem is, the Hawks has also won four in a row. One team was going to continue its streak, and one wasn't. Both squads jumped into it, with each set full of high-stress moments and pivotal mistakes or triumphs. And when the dust settled, it was Holy Names that ended up on top, with the Urban Knights falling in five sets 26-24, 22-25, 25-23, 22-25, 11-15. 

The match was a see-saw battle back and forth, and just as the score suggests, neither side was able to start or sustain any sort of run to gain any sort of momentum or advantage. It was a dogfight from start to finish, with both teams fighting tooth and nail for every point, and that seemed to affect the Urban Knights more than it affected their opposition.

"I would say that we looked slow tonight, for what I'm used to watching," Coach Allison Magner said. "Fatigue may have been a factor. Fatigue and having to have it. The other team wanted it more and that was very apparent."  

The Knights (5-7) had huge contributions from their two star hitters Leanani Keanini and Angela Heath. Keanini totaled 14 kills and had 20 digs, and Heath added a double-double of her own with 12 kills and 16 digs. Kawai Oleole had 43 assists and 16 digs of her own, and libero Nicolette Hagan had 20 digs on the defense. Senior middle blocker Amy Bush continued to get a high hitting percentage, with her 8 kills leading to a .421 mark, but the Knights were unable to find the floor enough to put the Hawks away.

The match had a grand total of 39 ties, and until Holy Names (6-8) went up 10-3 in the fifth set, neither team had been able to build anything more than a five-point lead. The Knights were able to do so by going up 7-2 in the first set, and then again in the fourth set at 12-7. Coach Magner touted the readiness and energy coming off the bench and threw the kitchen sink at the Hawks, who were fired up and threw it right back. 

"Although I'd like to stick with a lineup, until we see one consistently prove itself on the floor, that's not going to be the case," Magner said. "Everybody needs to be fighting for their spot at all times. For the most part I'd say the bench did quite well tonight, but it just wasn't enough."

Holy Names was led by Samantha Miller, who had 16 blocks and 3 aces. Left-handed outside hitter Rachel Vartanian created problems all night long for ART U, and she also had 16 kills, including the game-winner in the fifth set on setter Mariah Christensen's 32^nd assist of the game. The Hawks had three players in double figures for kills, with Kathleen Marusich adding another 15. 

The Knights will return home to Kezar Pavilion next Monday and Tuesday nights to face Dixie State. It will mark the beginning of a crucial five-game homestand for Academy of Art, all of which against PacWest opponents.