Box Score

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Davenport dug themselves a gigantic hole today that they almost climbed out of but ultimately fell in five sets to Northwestern Ohio in the final match of the quarterfinal round of pool play.  The five-set loss ends the Panthers' 2011 season with an overall record of 22-15.
 
Being only one win away from their first ever appearance in the WHAC Final 4 seemed so far away for Davenport after the opening two sets that saw them fall 25-18 and 25-21.  Davenport then put together a great rally with wins in sets three (25-15) and four (25-22) before falling 15-12 in the decider.
 
Three players posted double-digit kills led by junior Brittany Bott with 14. Kassie Graves and Hannah Stone finished with 13 and 12 respectively as Lexie Spetoskey dished out 27 assists and Graves led the defense with 21 digs.
 
In the final set, Davenport took a 3-3 tie and went on a 5-1 run to lead 8-4 at the side-switch.  Unfortunately, the Racers (24-14) ran off 10 of the next 11 points to lead 14-9.  Davenport continued to fight however and got the lead down to just two at 14-12 but a Racer kill ended the match and sent them into the WHAC Semifinals next weekend at Indiana Tech.
 

Post-Game Quotes – Head Coach Megan Garner

On momentum swing throughout match - We really put ourselves in a position today where we had to prove how bad we wanted to win and the girls responded great when we were down two sets.  We continued that momentum in the 5th set and were up 8-4.  A few passing breakdowns shook us up and UNOH stole the momentum and the match.  I couldn't be more proud of the heart my team showed today, I just wish we had the win to go with it.
 
On play of three seniors - Our three seniors gave it all they had in their final match.  I am proud of how they led their team down the stretch of the season.

Post-Game Notes                               

Davenport falls to 2-2 in five-set matches during 2011…The Panthers finished with their best season in school history with 22 wins and making it to within one win of the semifinal round in the WHAC

Follow DU Athletics on Twitter | Facebook 
Follow DU Volleyball on Facebook | Blog