Box Score #1
Box Score #2

Hayward, CA -- The Academy of Art University women's volleyball team has been busy, playing four games in two days last week and doing the same again this week in their final non-conference matchups. After missing the mark on two close matches yesterday, they ended the Route 92 showdown with a split, notching a victory against Humboldt State in the morning match and falling in a see-saw five-setter with Cal State Monterey Bay.

The Urban Knights went in to the game with Humboldt playing a slew of competitive games, as the last three matches were all decided by differences of six points or less. That didn't stop with the Jacks, as the first set was tied at 22-22 before Humboldt State finished the set to win 25-23. The Knights came back with a 25-21 win in the second set, and then another win with a 25-22 victory. Humboldt State forced a fifth set with a 25-16 win, but the Knights had a strong final set to win it 15-12.

Angela Heath flirted with history a little bit, putting up the third-most kills in program history with 25, hitting at a .310 clip along the way. Holli "Ka'ena" Kaina was right up there with her, notching 12 kills at a .417 percentage. Heath also added 17 digs, as did libero Janelle Burnett. Rachael Smith had the third-most assists in history with 54 sets, and she added 11 digs as well. Ashley Neale (18 kills) and Alexa Rosendale (15 kills) led the Jacks. 

"In the beginning of the Humboldt State match, I realized we were over coaching the team," said head coach Ed Jackson. "As the match progressed we minimized our feedback to just encouraging the team to work together. They responded as a group collectively and found ways to be successful. This transformation really showed in our match against Cal State Monterey Bay.  It was the first time our team responded to a challenge without the coaching staff's encouragement. It's milestone for championship teams.  I could not be more proud of every member of our team."

Due to the schedule of the Route 92 Showdown, the Knights had to go across the Bay from Cal State East Bay in Hayward to Notre Dame de Namur in Belmont. In the final match of the tournament, ART U drew Cal State Monterey Bay, and they continued their momentum from the last match, taking the first set 25-20. The Otters turned up the heat in the second and third set, taking both by convincing 25-14 scores to take a 2-1 lead. But in the fourth set, it was the Knights' turn for a convincing win, as they jumped out to a 5-0 lead and never let it go, tying it up with a 25-11 victory. ART U then had to play catchup in the final set, bringing it as close a 12-10 before CSUMB rattled off three straight points to deny the Knights a sweep of the day.

"I feel like we surprised CSUMB in the first set," said Jackson. "I really feel that thought we were not going to compete. We proved them wrong. Once they realized we always compete no matter the opponent,  to their credit, they answered and won sets two and three. Then  we hit a milestone with this year's team. We played the best team volleyball I've seen to date and it showed by defeated Monterey Bay by 14 points."

Taylor Suchy had a double-double, notching 14 kills and 17 digs. Heath led the Knights with 18 kills and 15 digs, and Lindsay Elgin had nine kills and two total blocks, and hit at a .500 hitting percentage. Burnett had 25 digs to lead all players. Julia Ashen had 20 kills to lead all players for Cal State Monterey Bay.

"Our biggest strength moving forward is we are gaining confidence everyday and we are seeing the correlation between being engaged with each other and being in positions to winning matches," Jackson said. "We still have a lot of growth remaining.  We are focused and excited about practice Monday as we prepare to host Holy Names on Thursday."

The Urban Knights will come home and open up the conference schedule next week with a match against PacWest newcomer Holy Names on Thursday before facing Dominican on Saturday. Be sure to sign up for Thursday's BATTLE OF THE DORMS by going to Fan Bus Central and clicking on 'Volleyball!'