Army Propels Past Holy Cross on the Road

Sunday, October 31

Worcester, MA

2 PM

Army West Point

16-6,10-3Patriot

Holy Cross

2-22,1-12Patriot

Army West Point

Holy Cross

Army Propels Past Holy Cross on the Road

October 31, 2021 | Volleyball

Box Score

MATCH 22
SCORE	Army 3, Holy Cross 0
RECORDS	Army (16-6, 10-3) \| Holy Cross (2-22, 1-12 )
LOCATION	Blaney Gymnasium

WORCESTER, Mass. – Army West Point volleyball (16-6, 10-3) propelled past the Holy Cross Crusaders (2-22, 1-12) on Sunday afternoon, winning in three sets to pick up the team's fourth consecutive Patriot League win.

Army had a slow first set but was able to find momentum and sweep Holy Cross in Blaney Gymnasium finishing with a .303 hitting clip while holding the Crusaders to a .080 hitting percentage. Diana Ethridge was commanding the court for Army finishing with 34 assists and 10 digs for her eighth double-double of the season.

Allanah Cutler led the attack for the Black Knights with 13 kills on a .478 hitting clip along with five digs. Cate Buckingham racked up 11 kills with a .368 hitting percentage while also recording two of the Black Knights' seven service aces. Buckingham was battling at the net for the Cadets, finishing with two solo blocks and one block assist. Paige Fixemer played a role in Army's defense, recording one solo block and three block assists for the team.

How It Happened

Army was slow at the start of set one, trailing 15-11 at the media timeout. Out of the timeout, Fixemer shutdown Holy Cross's attack with a solo block helping Army regain service. A few points later, the Cadets took off on a 5-0 scoring run (18-16). The Crusaders stayed on the Black Knights' heels, taking advantage of the Cadets' errors to regain the lead (20-19). Buckingham threw down a kill that ignited a 6-0 scoring run for Army to win the set 25-20. The Black Knights finished with two solo blocks and two block assists to help keep the Crusaders at .107 hitting percentage.

The teams traded points early in the match, but Army's offense was relentless, reaching 15 first for the media timeout (15-11). Buckingham was dominant in the match, contributing two kills after the media timeout to help get Army to a 20-13 lead. Buckingham had two more kills and a block assist to push Army to a 25-14 victory over the Crusaders. She finished the set with five kills while the team produced 18 kills on a .463 hitting clip.

Army kept its momentum from set two, leading 8-3 at the first timeout. The Cadets had a slow moment, making errors that kept Holy Cross in the set (14-13). Buckingham threw down a kill that shifted the momentum in Army's favor, igniting a 5-0 scoring run for the Black Knights (19-13). The Crusaders scored their final kill before Army shut the door on them with a 6-0 scoring run to win 25-14.

Inside the Box Score

Diana Ethridge recorded her eighth double-double of the season.
Cate Buckingham notched her seventh match with double-digit kills.
Allanah Cutler record her fifth match with double-digit kills.
Army held Holy Cross to a .080 hitting percentage.

Coach's Corner
"Proud of the team for getting better every set. They had certain goals for themselves, in sets two and three they reached those goals. Allanah (Cutler) played phenomenal today, she was powerful on the attack. She and Diana (Ethridge) did a great job connecting on the court. We were one of three teams to clinch last week and I am proud of this team for continuing to push themselves in every game. We are coming towards the end of the season and we will continue to focus on improving our game." - head coach Alma Kovaci Lee

Cadets' Corner

"We came into the game focused and came prepared to play. As a team we were adaptable, had fun and that allowed us to win." - Cate Buckingham

"We set high standards for ourselves today and this weekend. Our trust in each other created a comfortable environment to perform so well this weekend." - Allanah Cutler

Up Next

Army welcomes Navy on Friday, Nov. 5 for a 7 p.m. match, before celebrating senior day with a match up against Loyola on Saturday, Nov. 6.