Smith Attack
Nicol Biesek

Women's Volleyball

Knights Sweep Away Hawks In Return to Kezar

Box Score

Photo Gallery (images by Kenny Chacon)

San Francisco, CA -- Returning him after a grueling road trip last week, the Academy of Art University volleyball team shook off the rust of the weekend and handled their business against Bay Bridge rival Holy Names. It was a gritty contest that featured some fantastic plays by both sides, but the Urban Knights buckled down in the high leverage situations and swept the Hawks 3-0 (25-18, 25-22, 25-22) at Kezar Pavilion. Lindsay Elgin led the way for Academy of Art with 12 kills and an impressive .440 hitting percentage. 

ART U (9-10, 5-6 PacWest) jumped out to a quick lead in the first set with sophomore Taylor Suchy serving, scoring the first six points of the game. But Holy Names (0-20, 0-10 PacWest) showed the fight that led them to an 8-8 record in PacWest play last year, battling back to pull as close as 11-10. But another run with Emily Papale serving made it 16-10, and then to close the set the Urban Knights finished strong, getting a pair of aces from Kanoe Irvine before Emily Papale finished it off with a 25-18 win.

The second and third sets featured a lot of back and forth, as there were multiple ties in the middle game. The Urban Knights actually trailed as late at 22-20 on a kill from Marin Gibson, but after an ART U timeout, the Knights got five straight kills to tie, go ahead, and then win to go up 2-0. The third set was similar, as the Knights were down 12-8 before they tied it up with Brittany Ulmer serivng. It see-sawed back and forth and the Urban Knights were down 21-19, but it was Ulmer serving again when the Knights went back ahead 23-21 and then got back-to-back blocks to seal the deal.

Elgin led the Knights with 12 kills and also added four total blocks. Melissa Brum had 10 kills, while Kanoe Irvine had 18 digs to lead four Knights in double-digits. Rachael Smith had 39 assists, while Academy of Art totaled nine service aces. Rachel Vartanian had 16 kills to lead the Hawks on the attack. ART U will switch bridges as the Urban Knights face off against Dominican on Saturday.