Volleyball Postseason Comes to an End, Black Knights Fall in Five-Set Heartbreaker to #1 Colgate

Sunday, November 24

Hamilton, NY

2:00 PM

Army West Point

16-12,10-6Patriot

Colgate

19-10,14-2Patriot

Army West Point

Colgate

Volleyball Postseason Comes to an End, Black Knights Fall in Five-Set Heartbreaker to #1 Colgate

November 24, 2024 | Volleyball

Box Score

HAMILTON, N.Y. – Army West Point Volleyball took on the top-seeded Colgate Sunday afternoon in the 2024 Patriot League Volleyball Championship match. The Black Knights battled valiantly, claiming the second and third sets, but the home court advantage kicked in late in the fourth set and the momentum carried the Raiders to a 15-10 fifth set win and the Raiders claimed their fourth consecutive Patriot League Championship title.

The match was a true battle between two powerhouse teams as both teams recorded 57 kills, both teams recorded 54 assists, the Black Knights notched 82 digs to Colgate's 89, and Army earned 81.0 total points to the Raiders' 80.0.

Mackenzie Lynch and Juliette Myrick earned places on the 2024 Patriot League All-Tournament team for their efforts over the weekend. Lynch led the Black Knights against Colgate with 19 total kills on a .212 hitting percentage while Myrick notched 34 assists and 11 digs in the contest.

Chloe Murakami delivered 13 kills for Army, picking up a team-second 14 total digs in her time on the floor. Nicole Stroud picked up a team high and match second 23 digs over five sets of action.

Match Recap
The 2024 Patriot League Championship showed early that it could only proceed as an all-out knockdown drag-out matchup between two powerful teams. The Black Knights and the Raiders both got to work quickly, firing blistering kills and remaining steadfast on defense to keep the match within three points from 5-3 to 22-19.

Top-seeded Colgate found the edge late in the set, posting a 5-1 run to take a 24-19 advantage that was completed by back-to-back service errors from the two teams, ending the first set for Colgate 25-20.

Army stepped up the pace in the second set, quickly building up a cushion as they opened the set with a 4-1 advantage. The Black Knights maintained possession of the match's momentum as time wore on, building up to a six-point lead at 10-4.

Army controlled the pace of the match with key kills from Army's pin hitters cutting off Colgate runs up through the 24-23 mark when a kill from Kingsley Wallace clinched the second set for Army (25-23) and brought the match tied with one set apiece.

The Black Knights stepped up an already tremendous pace to a dominant one in the third set, pushing ahead to a 6-1 lead with back-to-back blocks from the duo Kingsley Wallace and Michelle Parker.

Army extended their lead to seven points only minutes later as Mackenzie Lynch put down two kills to go up 10-3. The Raiders climbed within four points at 13-9 with a series of kills and a pair of Army errors, but a six point run brought Army up to a 19-12 lead.

Freshmen Nicole Stroud and Naomi Chinchar served the Black Knights through the remaining points needed to clinch the third set 25-15 and go up two sets to Colgate's one.

The home team answered Army's challenge, holding close to Army in the fourth frame with 12 tied scores throughout the set.

After Army's early lead and a 20-20 tie as the frame drew to a close, the Raiders seized control of the momentum and put up a 5-1 run to clinch the fourth set 25-21 and send the match to a tiebreaeker.

With the momentum flowing for Colgate, the home team opened up a 10-6 lead before Army's squad could find their feet.

Chloe Murakami delivered a trio of kills along with a kill from Kingsley Wallace, but the Raiders forged ahead to claim the 15-10 fifth set win and clinch their fourth consecutive Patriot League Championship title.

Black Knight Bullet Points

Three Black Knights earned double-digit kills in the match - Mackenzie Lynch (19), Chloe Murakami (13), and Kingsley Wallace (12).
Juliette Myrick led the match with 34 assists, her 14^th match this season with at least 30 assists.
Five of Army's players recorded double-digits in digs for the second consecutive match – Nicole Stroud (23), Chloe Murakami (14), Naomi Chinchar (13), Mackenzie Lynch (12), and Juliette Myrick (11).
Chloe Murakami set a new career best for service aces in a single match with a match-leading six aces in the contest.
Army finishes the season 16-12 overall, seeing head coach Alma Kovaci Lee become the winningest coach in program history after graduating nearly the entire 2023 starting lineup.

Coach's Corner
"It is hard to put into words how incredibly proud we are of this young team," said head coach Alma Kovaci Lee. "When we met for the first time in August, we were timid, inexperienced, and unsure of ourselves, but these young women put their heads down, went to work, and believed in each other and their coaches. We never focused on wins and losses, but instead focused on our development as people, players, and as a team. The buy-in from this team was immediate and, quite honestly, we were having fun."

"We gave an experienced Colgate team every bit of the fight we could give tonight and left it all on the court," Kovaci Lee finished. "Their crowd was electric and their depth and experience won them this match. Our team did their absolute best and for that, we are extremely proud. I know we will see our team come back stronger next season."