LHU Athletics Press Release

November 20, 2003
Indiana (Pa.), Lees-McRae Advance to Atlantic Region Semifinals

(Lock Haven, Pa.) - Indiana (Pa.) University (24-11) and Lees-McRae College (31-11) both advance to the NCAA Division II Atlantic Region semifinals after recording wins over their respective opponents this evening in quarterfinal action in Lock Haven’s Thomas Fieldhouse. No. 3 Indiana fought back after a first-game loss for the four-game victory over No. 6 St. Augustine’s College (25-5), 26-30, 30-25, 30-21, and 30-22.   In the second quarterfinal match-up, No. 5 Lees-McRae upset No. 4 Clarion University (26-10) in three straight games, winning 30-25, 32-30 and 30-18.
            St. Augustine’s came out swinging in game one against Indiana, registering 17 kills en route to the 30-16 victory. Indiana battled back, winning a close 30-25 game after capitalizing on 10 attack errors by the Lady Falcons. The Indiana offense was on task in game three, totaling 17 kills including seven from Michelle Jones to take a 30-21 victory. Jones had the hot hand in game four as well, posting seven kills along with another five from Brittany Gates as Indiana rolled to a 30-22 win for the match.
            Outside hitter Michelle Jones led Indiana with 19 kills, while Brittany Gates closed out the four-game span with 14 kills and six blocks. Outside hitter Marcy Stutzman added 12 kills and eight digs. Defensively, setter Lacey George led the Indians with 13 digs along with her 42 assists. Libero Sarah Rosenberry totaled 12 digs.
            St. Augustine’s Katrina Johnson paced the Lady Falcons with 18 kills and totaled eight digs. Junior middle Magaly Gomez recorded 12 kills, 11 digs and three aces in the loss. Outside hitter Aurea Griffith added nine kills and nine assists.
           In the second quarterfinal match, Lees-McRae had built its game one lead up to 11 points at 21-11, but the Clarion Golden Eagles sliced that margin to three points by 28-25 following two Bobcat ball-handling errors. A Clarion service error gave Lees-McRae game-point, then sophomore outside hitter Lisa Scott, who had just entered the game on the previous play, put one away for the 30-25 victory.
           Long rallies marked game two, but Clarion climbed out into a 17-13 lead after three-straight Bobcat errors then took a six-point advantage at 21-15. Lees-McRae steadily worked its way back despite several more errors, recording eight attack errors on the game, as both scores grew to 29-26. A kill by LMC’s Tatiana Moore held off Clarion, then a block by Moore and setter Lenka Jamrichova moved the score to 29-28. A ball hit out of bounds by Clarion tied the game at 29-29, then another kill from Moore turned a one-point lead over to Lees-McRae. Clarion middle Karen Stoklosa brought the game back to even at 30-30 with a kill, but a subsequent error on the serve gave Lees-McRae the chance for the win. The Bobcats would make the most, as Amanda Huffaker and Lacie Smith recorded one of the team’s 12 blocks to seal the victory.

St. Augustine’s #12 Aurea Griffith attacks
while IUP setter Lacey George (l)
and middle Amy Badorf (r) set up the block in quarterfinal action on Thursday.

NCAA Division II Atlantic Region Championship Schedule
Thomas Fieldhouse - Lock Haven, Pa.

Thurs., Nov. 20 - QUARTERFINALS
(3) Indiana (Pa.) def. (6) St. Augustine ’s, 3-1
(5) Lees-McRae def. (4) Clarion, 3-0

Fri., Nov. 21 – SEMIFINALS
5 p.m. – (2) Edinboro vs. Indiana
7:30 p.m. – (1) Lock Haven vs. Lees-McRae

Sat., Nov. 22 – FINAL
6:30 p.m. – Semifinal Winners

          Lees-McRae used the momentum from its come-from-behind win in game two to catalyze its game three play, taking an early lead then never looking back to post the 30-18 victory for the match.
          Tatiana Moore of LMC led all hitters with 13 kills and also added 11 digs. Outside hitter AD Hunt totaled 11 kills and 10 digs. Setter Lenka Jamrichova posted 42 assists and 11 digs on the night, while middle Amanda Huffaker was big at the net for eight blocks and six kills.
          Clarion middle Colleen Sherk led the Golden Eagles with 11 kills, while outside hitter Sara Heyl posted a game-best 20 digs along with nine kills. Setter Jackie Hill added 36 assists and eight digs, while both Laurie Hepler (12 digs) and Ashley Kreiner (13 digs) aided the defensive efforts.
         Tomorrow’s semifinal matches of the NCAA Division II Atlantic Regional Championships will pit No. 2 Edinboro University (25-11) against No. 3 Indiana University (24-11) at 5 p.m. The 7:30 p.m. match-up will slate No. 1 Lock Haven University (29-5) against No. 5 Lees-McRae College (31-11).

###LHU###