KEVIN JENISON
GoSycamores.com
CEDAR FALLS, IOWA ? The Sycamore volleyball team continued to show improvement but did not have enough to top the 25th ranked Northern Iowa Panthers Saturday, falling in three sets 25-14, 25-15, 25-21.
The loss drops the Sycamores to 7-22 overall and 3-12 in the Missouri Valley Conference. Indiana State swings back into action on Thursday when the visit Illinois State in their final road game of the 2009 season. First serve is scheduled for 9:05 p.m. (ET).
The win was a school record 22nd straight for the Panthers, who improved to 24-2 overall and 14-0 in the Missouri Valley Conference.
Junior Ana Maira Charun paced the Sycamore attack with 10 kills while sophomore Stacy Qualizza had six and freshman Morgan Dall had five. Senior Whitney Fromm had her second straight double-double of the weekend with 25 assists and 10 digs.
Sophomore Kiya James led the defense with 14 digs. James has 470 digs this season which moves into fourth on the all-time single season list. The Sycamore moved past Cheryl Berg who had 457 in 1999.
The Sycamores kept the opening set close in the early going and had a 3-2 lead after a block by Qualizza and Dall. Northern Iowa used a 5-0 to regain the advantage at 7-3. Indiana State came back and cut the deficit to three on two separate occasions, the last at 12-9 on a Charun kill off a Fromm set. The Panthers took control after that, outscoring ISU 13-5 the rest of the way to take the opening set 25-14.
The second set started out much the same as the first except that the Sycamores were never able to get into the lead. Still, Indiana State kept the set close until the Panthers broke a six-all tie with a 3-0 run. Northern Iowa continued to pull away to defeat the Sycamores 25-15 in the second set.
Indiana State came out in the third set determined to get a win against the Panthers and that determined effort nearly paid dividends as the set was tied 14 times with seven lead changes. The Sycamores had the lead three times in the set, the last one coming at 3-2 off a Charun kill.
The Sycamores stayed within striking distance with another Charun kill bringing Indiana State within one point, 21-20, late in the set. Northern Iowa surged back in front 24-20 but was denied set and game point on a kill by freshman Shea Doran off a Fromm set. The Panthers did get the point on their next chance, taking the set 25-21 and the game 3-0.
