Central Michigan University Athletics
How Sweep It Is: Chippewas Sweep SHSU Invitational
9/20/2009 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Kaitlyn Schultz and Alexis Lonneman also earned all-tournament honors for a Chippewas team that posted dominant defensive numbers all weekend, in addition to a diverse offensive attack. It was the first all-tournament honor of Hurt's career, the second of the season for Lonneman and first of the year for Schultz.
CMU has now won five matches in a row and six of seven as the Maroon and Gold head into Mid-American Conference action starting next week. All six victories have been sweeps.
CMU 3, Lamar 0
Lauren Krupsky and Kaitlyn Schultz each finished with 13 kills and the Chippewas hit .336 to sweep 2008 NCAA Tournament participant Lamar (25-23, 25-17, 29-27) to start Saturday's action.
Kaitlyn Hurt added 11 kills, three aces and three blocks to aid the Maroon and Gold cause.
Setter Stephanie Buddie finished with 47 assists and Alexis Lonneman paced the defense with 15 digs. The Chippewas also got strong efforts from Lindsey Dulude (nine kills, seven digs), Danielle Gotham (eight kills, two blocks) and Kelsey Detweiler (eight digs).
CMU trailed the first set late, 23-21, but tallied four straight points to rally for the victory. A kill by Krupsky got Central within one and a LU attack error tied the set at 23. A service ace by Hurt, one of six by the Chippewas, moved it to set point and Dulude closed out the frame with a kill.
The two teams slugged out the first set, with CMU hitting .341 and Lamar hit .364.
In the second set, the two teams were tied at 16 before Central went on a 9-1 run to close out the frame. A pair of aces by Krupsky and three kills by Schultz fueled the run.
The third set was also tight, with late ties at 17, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26 and 27, before CMU finally managed to take consecutive points on a kill by Krupsky and an ace by Dulude to complete the sweep.
CMU 3, SHSU 0
Showing off their versatility, the Chippewas swept Sam Houston State (25-16, 26-24, 25-21) in a defensive struggle mere hours after sweeping Lamar in an offensive shootout.
Kaitlyn Hurt led the offensive charge, pacing the squad with nine kills and four blocks.
CMU went 12-for-16 (75 percent) in sideouts in the first set and 41-for-61 (67.2 percent) in the match, while piling up eight blocks and six aces.
Danielle Gotham (seven kills, four blocks), Lauren Krupsky (six kills), Kaitlyn Schultz (five kills, three blocks) and Lauren Krupsky (five kills) completed the diverse attack.
Senior libero Alexis Lonneman finished with 15 digs and senior setter Stephanie Budde finished with 31 assists and 10 digs to go with three aces and two blocks.
After claiming the first set easily, the Chippewas had to rally from down 20-17 in the second set to claim a 26-24 victory.
With the third set tied at 15, the Maroon and Gold scored five straight points to take a 20-15 lead and hold on for the sweep and the tournament crown.
