Stewart, Dukes Sweep W&M in CAA Opener

Friday, September 26

Williamsburg, Va.

7 p.m.

James Madison University

9-5 (1-0CAA)

William and Mary

4-11 (0-1CAA)

James Madison

William & Mary

9/26/2014 8:57:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score

WILLIAMSBURG, Va. - Senior outside hitter Martha Stewart (Naperville, Ill./Waubonsie Valley) racked up 13 kills on a .480 attack percentage to lead the James Madison volleyball team to a 3-0 (25-21, 25-21, 25-19) win at William and Mary in both teams' Colonial Athletic Association opener on Friday evening.

Junior outside hitter Meghan Niski (St. Charles, Ill./St. Charles East) also reached double-digits, knocking down a match-high 14 kills as the Dukes moved to 9-5 (1-0 CAA) on the season and won their conference opener for the fourth consecutive season.

The first set was evenly-matched for much of the opening points, as neither team was able to find consistency on the attack. The Dukes were able to seize momentum first, taking a 15-12 lead on consecutive kills from Niski, Stewart and sophomore Kate Whitmire (Alexandria, Va./T.C. Williams) and never allowing the Tribe to go ahead again. JMU closed out the set on a 3-1 run to take the frame, 25-21.

In the second set, William and Mary stormed out to an early 3-0 lead and held the advantage for much of the frame, eventually stretching the lead to 11-7. After a timeout from the Dukes, JMU battled back to tie things at 13-13, the first of seven ties in as many chances, before finally taking the lead for good at 20-19. A 7-2 JMU run closed out the set at 25-21.

The Dukes took advantage of momentum in the third and final set, storming out to an early 10-4 lead and never allowing the Tribe to get closer than two for the remainder of the match. JMU would eventually close out the set at 25-19 to clinch the match.

Junior MacKenzie Kleespies (Lincoln University, Pa./Avon Grove) continued her stellar defensive season with a match-high 21 digs, while Niski completed her double-double with 11 of her own. Junior setter Sarah Patterson (Roanoke, Va./Hidden Valley) racked up 32 assists to go with eight digs and four blocks.

"It's always good to get a win on the road to start conference play," Head Coach Lauren Steinbrecher said. "I was excited to see multiple players step up tonight to help the team. We're looking forward to working hard this week to continue to improve."

In all, the Dukes tallied 7.0 team blocks and held the Tribe to a .137 attack percentage on the evening. JMU hit just .207 for the match, but tallied four service aces and recorded just 15 errors. William and Mary fell to 4-11 (0-1 CAA) with the loss.

JMU is back in action on Thursday, Oct. 2, when they return to Sinclair Gymnasium for the first time in three weeks for a 7 p.m. match against CAA-newcomer Elon. They remain at home all weekend, playing host to UNCW and College of Charleston on Fri., Oct. 3 (6 p.m.) and Sun., Oct. 5 (1 p.m.), respectively.