09/24/2009
Volleyball: Cougars Roll Past Anna Maria, 3-0

Release Courtesy of Anna Maria Sports Information

Paxton, Mass. - The Clark Cougars defeated the Anna Maria AMCATS in straight sets in a non-conference matchup Thursday night at the Fuller Activities Center. Clark improves to 3-5 (1-1 NEWMAC) while Anna Maria falls to 5-5 (0-2 TCCC).

Clark started fast out of the gate, taking an early 7-0 lead on three aces by sophomore Kristin McGinty (Vail, Colo.). Clark was in cruise control the rest of the way, winning the set 25-12. McGinty (4 aces, 4 kills, and 1 block), was instrumental in the Cougars first set victory.

The beginning of the second match was a close contest, as Clark led by a slight 9-6 margin. Clark won the next 14 out of 17 points en route to a 25-10 victory. ToniMarie Illuzzi (Manorville, N.Y.) led Clark with a kill and an ace.

The AMCATS fought hard in game three, however the Cougars attack was too much for the AMCATS to handle, falling 25-19. Anna Maria led 10-7 early on when Clark called a timeout. After the break, Clark scored three consecutive points, knotting the score at 10 apiece. The teams battled back and forth to 14 a piece, when Clark scored six unanswered points and eventually finished the sweep 25-19. McGinty (3 Kills) and Illuzi (Kill, Block) led the Cougars in the final frame.

McGinty (10 kills, 3 blocks, 3 aces), Nichole Lopez (Alameda, Calif.) (17 assists), and Emily Visone (West Hempstead, N.Y.) (nine digs) were the stars for Clark, while Nichole Robbie (4 kills, 3 digs, 2 assists), Leah Murphy (3 kills, 6 assists), and Sandy Acosta (2 kills, 3 digs) paced Anna Maria.

Anna Maria will a host a tri-match starting at 3:00 p.m. tomorrow against Worcester Polytechnical Institute and Daniel Webster, while Clark hosts Springfield September 29th at 7:00 p.m.