Let The Games Begin! Kent State Volleyball Battles Akron In First Event Of PNC Wagon Wheel Challenge
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kent St. (8-12, 1-4 mac) | 22 | 26 | 28 | 23 | 15 | 3 |
| Buffalo (9-10, 2-3 mac) | 25 | 24 | 26 | 25 | 12 | 2 |
| Kent St. | Buffalo |
|---|---|
|
K:
Maigan Larsen - 15
B: Kathy Krupa - 8 D: Bridget Grdina - 17 SA: Maigan Larsen - 3 |
K:
SCOTT, Liz - 18
B: 2 Players (#14, #16 - 4) D: SVOBODA, Kelly - 14 SA: NAGLE, Kayla - 5 |
| TEAM STATISTICS | Kent St. | Buffalo |
|---|---|---|
| Hitting % | .201 | .127 |
| Blocks | 19.5 | 9.0 |
| Digs | 52 | 50 |
| Aces | 6 | 9 |
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kent St. (8-13, 1-5) | 15 | 13 | 23 | 0 | ||
| Akron (4-15, 1-5) | 25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
| Kent St. | Akron |
|---|---|
|
K:
2 Players (#6, #16 - 5)
B: 4 Players (#6, #13, #14, #16 - 1) D: Bridget Grdina - 9 SA: Lauren Engleman - 2 |
K:
Courtney Jarvis - 13
B: Paiton Twitty - 9 D: Morgan Kuhn - 9 SA: Jill Paluch - 2 |
| TEAM STATISTICS | Kent St. | Akron |
|---|---|---|
| Hitting % | -.010 | .297 |
| Blocks | 2.0 | 10.0 |
| Digs | 30 | 39 |
| Aces | 7 | 3 |
Golden Flashes close three-match road trip Saturday (Oct. 8) at Akron in the first event of the PNC Wagon Wheel Challenge, which further expands a rivalry dating back more than a half-century between the two schools.
The Kent State volleyball team continues its three-match road trip with a pair of Mid-American Conference East Division battles. The Golden Flashes (7-12, 0-4 MAC) travel to Buffalo to square off with the Bulls Friday (Oct. 7) at 7 p.m. before making the short drive from Kent to the Rubber City to take on Akron Saturday (Oct. 8) at 5 p.m. in the first event of the PNC Wagon Wheel Challenge, which further expands a rivalry dating back more than a half-century between the two schools.
The PNC Wagon Wheel Challenge is based on a time-honored competition for the historic wooden Wagon Wheel Trophy awarded originally in 1945 to the winner of the annual Akron-Kent State football game. For the 2011-12 academic year, the PNC-sponsored rivalry will broaden the competition to include 15 NCAA varsity sports, with victories in each sport adding one point to the challenge standings. In keeping with tradition, the annual winner of the football contest will gain possession of the historic wooden Wagon Wheel trophy, while the school that accumulates the most total points in all varsity matchups for that academic year will receive an overall series trophy.
Kent State is looking to get back in the win column after losing six straight. The Flashes were swept by Ohio last Thursday (Sept. 29), 3-0, before rallying from a 2-0 deficit but falling short of completing the comeback effort in a 3-1 loss at Central Michigan last Saturday (Oct. 1). Junior Kathy Krupa (Burbank, Ill.) led Kent State with a team-high 12 kills, reaching double digits for the eighth time in 2011. Senior Maigan Larsen (Lancaster, Wis.) hit double figures for the 15th time this season and fourth straight match, tallying 11 kills to go along with a team-high 10 digs to achieve her sixth double-double of the season.
The Golden Flashes return to the friendly confines of the M.A.C. Center for their only home matches in October next weekend. A pair of MAC West opponents are on the docket as Kent State meets Toledo Friday (Oct. 14) at 7 p.m. before hosting Ball State Saturday (Oct. 15) in its annual Homecoming match. Stop by the Athletic Ticket Office in the M.A.C. Center or call (330) 672-2244 for more information.
