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Post by skrapheap on Nov 14, 2015 0:18:32 GMT -6
Tonight's matches in the Horizon League settled the top half of the tournament bracket, and secured a place in the field for Milwaukee. The combination of Cleveland State's 3-1 win over UIC in Chicago and Wright State's road upset victory over Oakland clinched the top seed and hosting rights for the Vikings.
Oakland and Valparaiso will finish as the second and third seeds. If Valpo wins and Oakland loses on Saturday, Valpo would tie Oakland for second place in the standings at 11-5, but Oakland would be second seed because they split two regular season matches with Cleveland State, who swept Valpo in two regular season matches. If Oakland wins, they will finish in second, regardless of what Valpo does.
A Panther win and a Northern Kentucky loss would tie the teams with 8-8 records, and the Panthers would take the fourth seed because they swept the season series. A Norse wins locks NKU into the fourth seed, and the Panthers would receive the fifth seed if they beat Green Bay and the sixth seed if they lose to the Phoenix.
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Post by skrapheap on Nov 14, 2015 18:51:16 GMT -6
Green Bay swept the Panthers today. The scores were close, but the Phoenix won three sets and swept the season series.
According to the league website, the tournament field will include Cleveland State as the top seed, followed by Oakland and Valparaiso. Green Bay and Northern Kentucky are tied for fourth; i don't know who wins the tiebreaker. The Panthers will be the sixth seed, and will face Valpo in the first round of the tournament. If the Panthers win, they would face Cleveland State in the Semifinals.
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Post by skrapheap on Nov 14, 2015 18:57:23 GMT -6
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Post by skrapheap on Nov 16, 2015 17:34:04 GMT -6
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Post by skrapheap on Nov 20, 2015 17:40:41 GMT -6
The first set of the quarterfinal match looked like many of the sets the Panthers have played this season: playing fairly even volleyball, but prone to give up runs and lose control. The Panthers played to a 12-all tie, and then the Crusaders went on runs to take control. Valpo won 25-18, outhitting Milwaukee .344 to .158. The Panthers were led by Celine Jones and Jess Kalous with four kills each, the only Panthers with a positive hitting percentage for the set. Regular season leaders Maggie Dunbar and Maddie Williams had only one kill apiece.
The Panthers rebounded in set two, riding a four point run to a 6-4 lead. Play continued back and forth, but the Panthers retook two point leads at 19-17 and 20-18, and then an extended run to 23-18. The Panthers reached set point at 24-19, and evened the match on a Sami Herron kill to win set two, 25-20. The Panthers hit .464 for the set, to raise their percentage for the match to .282. Valparaiso hit .306, for a two-set percentage of .324. Jones continued to lead the Panthers with eight kills on a .400 hitting percentage, followed by Dunbar with seven (.286 percentage), then Kalous (six kills, a team-high .455 percentage). Sami Herron stepped up as well, finishing set two with four kills.
In set three, the Panthers jumped out to a 7-3 lead, forcing a Crusader timeout. The Panther led was extended to 11-5, and the Crusaders responded by scoring seven of the next eight points to narrow the lead to 12-8, forcing a Panther timeout. Out of the timeout, Valpo continued to play well, forcing another timeout when the score was tied at 14. Valpo took a 16-14 lead, which they maintained to 18-16. The Panthers then tied the score at 18-all on kills by Kayla Price and Dunbar, and retook a lead on a block by Williams and Herron. Out of the timeout, Valpo scored three straight to tie the score, but the Panthers got to set point on an in-the-net call on Valpo, and finished the set, 25-23, on a Valpo hitting error. When the Panther lead reached three at 23-20, Valparaiso took their second timeout. Jones continued to pace the Panthers, reaching a career high at 13 kills on a .386 hitting percentage. Dunbar reached double figures in kills at the end of the third set with 10. At the end of the set, the Panthers were hitting .326 to .324 for the Crusaders.
The Panthers took a 3-1 lead to start set four, and the Crusaders responded with four points to take a two point lead of their own. The Panthers took their first timeout after the Crusaders opened the lead to 8-4. Out of the timeout, the Valpo run continued, extending the lead to 10-4. The Panthers continued chipping away at the lead, forcing a Valpo timeout when the lead had dwindled to 13-10. Back and forth play continued with the lead remaining at three to 17-14, and the Panthers took their second timeout. The lead grew back to five at 20-15, and the set slipped away, with the Crusaders reaching set point at 24-16, and winning 25-17, to force a fifth set.
Set five saw the Panthers score two quick points, only to see Valpo tie the score. The Panthers reopened a lead, but Valpo pulled back into a tie and took an 8-7 lead at the change of sides. The Panthers tied the score at 9-all, and took a timeout with Valpo leading 10-9, and their second timeout when Valpo extended the lead to 12-9. In the end, the Panthers could not climb out of the hole, losing set five 15-11.
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