LEOPARDS SOAR PAST HAWKS IN NCAA QUARTERFINALS
Anna Calmer (#9) collected 9 kills against the Hawks in quarterfinal action (ncaa.com)
The University of La Verne secured a three-set sweep over New Paltz State by defeating the Hawks 25-15, 25-16, 25-16 in NCAA Quarterfinal action Thursday at the Shirk Center on the Illinois Wesleyan University campus in Bloomington, Illinois.
The Leopards (26-2) enjoyed a .284 hitting percentage in the sweep while their defense held the opponent to a .111 clip. La Verne recorded 54 digs in the contest compared to 43 for New Paltz.
La Verne will meet Juniata in Friday's first semifinal, scheduled for a 4:30 pm (CST) start. It will be the second meeting between the schools this season with Juniata earning a 3-1 triumph over the Leopards on Oct. 10.
The Leos jumped out to an early 8-3 lead over New Paltz, forcing a Hawk timeout. La Verne continued its momentum to stretch its advantage to 14-4 and 22-11 before taking the set on a New Paltz serving error at 24-15. Gonzales registered 7 kills in the first frame as La Verne hit .250 as a team.
Leading 10-8 in the second set, La Verne established control with a decisive 7-0 run to stretch its advantage to 17-8. The Hawks cut the lead to seven at 22-15 but would get no closer as the Leos claimed three of the next four points, culminating in a kill by Villanueva to win the second frame 25-16 and take a 2-0 lead for the match.
New Paltz State battled the Leopards through much of the third stanza, taking an early 7-5 lead before a 4-0 Leopard run to give La Verne a 9-7 advantage. The Hawks drew even at 11-11 and 14-14, but La Verne embarked on a 11-2 run which included a 4-0 spurt to close the match. Villanueva's seventh kill of the contest at 24-16 gave La Verne the triumph and with it a ticket to its first semifinal appearance in three seasons.
The Hawks, which reached the quarterfinal round by winning the New York region, conclude their season at 32-10. Brittany Coyle paced New Paltz State with 8 kills.
Gonzales led La Verne with a match-high 17 kills. Crista Jones and Anna Calmer each collected 9 kills while Rebecca Villanueva contributed 7 for the match. Gonzales also tallied 10 digs to record a double-double. Villanueva and Chelsea Sleight each totaled 11 digs. Setter Yesenia Lopez dished out a match-high 36 assists.
Live stats and streaming will be provided by the NCAA for each of the matches through the finals. Leopard fans can also follow the action on LeoFM. Click on the link below for more information.
