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American Volleyball Cruises Past Bucknell, 3-0, in League Semifinals
Eagles defeat last year’s Patriot League Champion 30-13, 32-30,
30-22

Game Stats | November 17, 2001

Freshman Natacha Cornaz led the offense versus Bucknell with 15 kills.

WASHINGTON --The American volleyball team soundly knocked off last year’s Patriot League Championship team, Bucknell, 3-0, this afternoon in the first game of the Patriot League semifinals held in Bender Arena. The Eagles entered the tournament as the No. 1 seed and will play the winner of the Army-Lehigh match in the championship game tomorrow at 1:00 p.m. The Eagles are undefeated in league play this season and today’s win extended their current winning streak to 14 matches.

Scores of the match against the 2000 League champion Bison were 30-13, 32-30, and 30-22. The Eagles have not dropped a single game in Patriot League play in 2001, their inaugural season in the league. American notched a .281 hitting percentage compared to .052 by Bucknell.

Freshman Natacha Cornaz (Lausanne, Switzerland/Gymnase Auguste Picard) led the offense with 15 kills and a .565 hitting percentage. The reigning Patriot League Player of the Year, sophomore Karla Kucerkova (Olomovc, Czech Republic/Brno), also came up strong for the Eagles, finishing the match with 12 kills and nine digs. Co-Rookie of the Year Sabrina Vasconcelos (Fortaleza, Brazil/Colegio Christus) recorded 33 assists, four kills and five digs.

American head coach Barry Goldberg also earned honors in 2001 as the Patriot League Coach of the Year as announced on Friday night at the league banquet. The winner of this year’s Patriot League Tournament will receive an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.

Match Summary:
Kills: American 51, Bucknell 28
Attack Percentage: American .281, Bucknell .052
Blocks: American 3, Bucknell 3
Service Aces: American 5, Bucknell 8