Volleyball News Releases
Rams prepare for UW-La Crosse Tournament this weekend
Coming up - Friday, Oct. 23, at UW-La Crosse Tournament, La Crosse, Wis., vs. Buena Vista, 5 p.m., vs. UW-Platteville, 7 p.m.; Saturday, Oct. 24, at UW-La Crosse Tournament, La Crosse, Wis., at UW-La Crosse, 10 a.m., vs. Clarke, 12 p.m.; Tuesday, Oct. 27, vs. Loras (8-17, 3-2), Small Multi-Sport Center, Mount Vernon, 6 p.m. (JV), 7:30 p.m. (varsity).
Ram rewind - Cornell climbed into third place in the Iowa Conference race and clinched its first winning season since 2004 with wins No. 17 and 18 last week.
The Rams coasted to a 25-15, 25-10, 25-14 sweep of league foe Buena Vista Oct. 13 in Storm Lake. Cornell concluded a perfect week with a four-set nonconference win over Augustana (25-16, 21-25, 25-19, 25-21) Oct. 15 in Rock Island, Ill.
Cornell raised its season record to 18-7, currently sporting its best winning percentage in a season since 1988, when the team finished 21-7. The Rams are 4-2 in IIAC play, one game out of second place behind Simpson (5-1) and two back of Wartburg (5-0).
"It was a good week for us," Cornell head coach Jeff Meeker said. "Although Buena Vista has had a tough year, it is always good to earn a conference road win. The Augustana match was a great win. We were not at our best, but were effectively able to change momentum when we were down in Set 3. It was an exciting and hard-fought match with some of our best rallies of the year."
The Rams hit .372 in the Buena Vista match, committing only five attack errors in 86 attempts. Junior Alissa Benjamin (Lakewood, Colo./D'Evelyn) paced a balanced offense with 11 kills, followed by Laura Dudgeon (Bettendorf/Bettendorf) with nine. Caiti Hladky (Fort Lupton, Colo./Valley) recorded 14 digs and fired three aces, sharing team-high honors with Morgan May (Dubuque/Wahlert). Hannah Boehmer (Riverside/Mid-Prairie) distributed 30 assists.
Kristin Paczosa (Arlington Heights, Ill./Buffalo Grove) had a big match against Augustana, totaling a season-high 20 digs to go along with 11 kills. Dudgeon and Benjamin finished with 12 and 10 kills, respectively. Hladky collected 18 digs and Boehmer dished out 37 assists. The Rams rallied for 10 unanswered points to close out the 25-19 win in Set 3.
Closing in on 20 - The Rams are two wins shy of their first 20-win season since 2004, when they finished 23-13. Cornell has reached the 20-win mark seven times in school history, including four straight seasons from 1986-89.
Cornell can achieve the mark this weekend with four scheduled matches at the UW-La Crosse Tournament. The Rams have six matches left in the regular season, including IIAC home dates with Loras Oct. 27 and Wartburg Nov. 3.
"We are looking to a week without matches as we prepare for finals and the stretch run," Meeker said. "The La Crosse Tournament will be a great final tune-up for us before our last conference matches. I like the position we are in and believe that our best ball is ahead of us."
By the numbers - The Rams have put away 12 of their opponents in three sets. Four of their wins ended in four sets and two of them went the entire five. In 25 matches to date, Cornell has dropped the opening set only six times.
Rams in the rankings - Dudgeon remains the conference leader in hitting percentage (.402) and kills (3.73 kps). She hit .465 with only one attack error in 43 attempts in two matches last week. Dudgeon is on pace to shatter the school's single-season record for hitting percentage of .349, set by Kori Sims in 2003.
Boehmer's 9.66 assists per match rank second in the IIAC. Senior CJ Ronhovde (Elmwood, Neb./Elmwood-Murdock) is third in serving with 0.43 aces per set. Cornell leads the IIAC in team hitting percentage (.256), kills (12.64 kps) and aces (2.13 aps).
