Oct. 5, 2009

Center Valley, Pa. -- Army won two matches to improve to 4-0 in League play, all while pushing its winning streak to eight matches.

Meanwhile, Colgate put an end to an American streak by winning 3-1 Saturday. The loss ended American's streak of eight straight seasons with one or no League losses during the regular season.

Army's Maureen Bannon was awarded her fourth Player of the Week award for helping Army to 16-3, while Colgate freshman Kaleigh Durket was named the Rookie of the Week for the first time in her career.

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Player of the Week (9.28.09-10.4.09)

Maureen Bannon, Army Sr., S, Manhattan Beach, Calif./Marymount Bannon led the Black Knights to their eighth straight win and fourth straight in League play. Notching 86 assists in two matches, Bannon fueled wins over Lehigh (3-1) and Lafayette (3-0). She also posted 13 digs, five blocks and an ace. She had 54 assists in Army's win over Lehigh, and with her 10 digs, she earned her 10th double-double of the 2009 season. Bannon moved to within 65 assists of sixth place on the League's all-time record list.

Rookie of the Week (9.28.09-10.4.09)

Kaleigh Durket, Colgate  Fr., RS, El Dorado Hills, Calif./Oak Ridge Durket led Colgate in kills in two matches against 2008 NCAA Tournament teams, collecting 39 overall in three matches last week. She had 17 kills and 13 digs a loss to Albany (N.Y.), while notching nine kills in a win at Navy and 13 in a win at American -- Colgate's first win over American in school history. She tallied five blocks in the win and finished with nine for the week. She also had four assists and two service aces.

Honorable Mention Performances Last Week

Magdalena Tekiel, American Jr., OH, Warsaw, Poland Tekiel led the Eagles with 41 kills last week, including a career-high 21 in a loss to Colgate. She also had 17 digs and four blocks.

Francine Vasquez, Army Fr., RS, Rancho Cucamonga, Calif./Los Osos Vasquez had 22 kills and 21 digs in two matches as Army improved to 4-0 in the League and upped its win-streak to eight.

Krysta Cicala, American Fr., S, Northville, Mich./Louisiana Tech Cicala recorded 117 assists in 10 sets (11.70 avg.) as American went 2-1 last week.

Patriot League Notebook

Raiders Join Upset Party, Upend Defending Champs

A week after Lehigh picked up its first League win over American, Colgate managed the same feat, winning 3-1 Saturday at American. The Raiders also won at Navy on Friday, marking the first time that Colgate has swept its weekend road trip to Annapolis,  Md., and Washington, D.C. In the win, Colgate was led by freshman Kaleigh Durket, who had 13 kills, six digs, an ace and five blocks. American is 2-2 for the first time in League history and has never lost two or more matches until this season. The Eagles are now 111-5 in League play. Both Colgate and Lehigh are 3-1 in League play after two weeks. Army is 4-0 with wins over both Colgate and Lehigh.

Youth Takeover

It's getting younger at the top as several freshmen and sophomores sit high up on the League statistical leaderboard. American freshman Krysta Cicala is first in the League in assists with 617 (10.28 per set), while Lehigh sophomore Angelika Kopacz is No. 1 in service aces with 31 (0.46). Army freshman Ariana Mankus (3.46, 211) and Holy Cross freshman Megan Lynch (3.25, 185) are first and third in kills, respectively. Colgate freshman Kaleigh Durket is fifth (3.10, 183). Mankus is fifth in hitting percentage (.286), while Lafayette sophomore Alana Taylor is second (.304). Bucknell freshman Ragin Jackson leads the League in blocks (1.00, 53) and Lehigh sophomore Emma Melendez is fourth in digs (3.87, 244). Bucknell sophomore Emily Sawanobori is fifth in digs (3.71, 189). Army has led the way in the freshman category by taking four of the first six Rookie of the Week awards with Ariana Mankus winning three times and Francine Vasquez winning once. 

Ready, Set, Assist!

Army and Colgate returned two of the League's top three setters from 2008 in Maureen Bannon and Meghan Fanta. For Army, Bannon has won the Patriot League Setter of the Year award twice (2006 and 2007) and entered the 2009 season with a school-career-record 11.4 assists per set. With her 712 assists in 2009, she has vaulted up to seventh place in League history with 3,745 career assists. She is 65 away from moving into sixth place and 635 away from tying the League record. Fanta is ranked eighth with 3,620 assists. Fanta's 3,620 assists is a school record at Colgate. Fanta is ranked eighth in the League in 2009 with 6.41 assists per set, while Bannon is second with 10.17. American freshman Krysta Cicala leads the League with 10.28 per set.

Keep Track of the Patriot League Through Social Media

In addition to visiting www.patriotleague.org, League fans and followers have plenty of new ways to stay updated and involved during the 2009 season and beyond. The Patriot League has accounts on Facebook and Twitter, and has now started a blog to give more information on the action on the field. All three accounts are accessible through the multimedia link at the right-hand sidebar on the front page of www.patriotleague.org.

Team Notebooks

American  The Eagles went 1-1 over the week, dropping their second League match of the 2009 season. After sweeping Bucknell 3-0 on Friday, the defending champion Eagles lost 3-1 to Colgate to fall to 2-2 in the League. Magdalena Tekiel scored a career-high 21 kills against Colgate. The Eagles had lost just three League matches in eight years before losing two in the first two weeks of the League schedule. This is the first time that American has lost two League matches in a season. The Eagles will return to League play with a trip to Navy at 7 p.m. Friday.

Army The Black Knights extended their win streak to eight matches with wins at Lehigh (3-1) and Lafayette (3-0) on Friday and Saturday, respectively. Army freshman outside hitter Ariana Mankus averaged 3.29 kills per set and her 20 digs at Lehigh marked a career-best. She averaged 4.29 digs per set. Sophomore MB Rachel Willis also averaged 3.29 kills per set and had .409 hitting percentage on the weekend. Maureen Bannon had 86 assists over the two matches to inch closer to sixth place on the League's all-time list. Freshman Francine Vasquez had 22 kills and 21 digs for the Black Knights, who will be back on the court at Holy Cross for a 5 p.m. League match on Saturday.

Bucknell The Bison continued with League play last week, falling 3-0 to American on Friday and winning 3-0 at Navy on Saturday. Heidi Kamp led the Bison with 12 kills and nine blocks. Freshman Ragin Jackson had five blocks, all coming in their win over Navy. The Bison will return to League play with a match at Colgate at 7 p.m. Saturday.

Colgate The Raiders picked up two League wins last week, including an upset over the defending champion American Eagles on Saturday. Colgate won 3-1 over Navy on Friday before defeating the preseason No. 1 Eagles 3-1 on Saturday. Freshman Kaleigh Durket played a key role in the win, recording 13 of her 39 kills on the week. She also had 19 digs and nine blocks as Colgate went 2-1 over the week. Meghan Fanta moved into eighth place on the all-time Patriot League assist list with her 25-assist effort in the victory at American.  The senior has 3,620 for her career and needs 189 more to pass former Lehigh setter Patty Watson for seventh. Now that the winless skid with American has been snapped, the Raiders will look to snap their current longest losing streak this Tuesday at Syracuse. The Orange have a 46-9-1 all-time lead in the series and have won the last 17 matches off the Raiders. Colgate will host Bucknell at 7 p.m. Saturday.

Holy Cross The Crusaders were swept in two League matches last week, falling 3-0 at Lafayette and Lehigh. Holy Cross, which has lost 11 straight matches, will return to the court with a non-League match against Bryant at 7 p.m. Thursday. They will then continue League play with a 5 p.m. match against Army.

Lafayette The Leopards went 2-1 last week, including a League win over Holy Cross. Lafayette began the week with a 3-1 non-League win over Manhattan on Wednesday. The Leopards won 3-0 against Holy Cross on Friday before falling 3-0 to Army on Saturday. Cara Mulholland recorded 31 kills and 34 assists over the three matches, highlighted by her 14 kills and 19 digs against Manhattan. Lafayette will host League rival Lehigh at 7 p.m. Friday.

Lehigh The Mountain Hawks went 1-1 in League play last week, losing 3-1 to Army on Friday and winning 3-0 against Holy Cross on Saturday. Angela Kopacz had 20 kills and 26 digs in the two matches. Lehigh will host Delaware State in a non-League match at 7 p.m. Tuesday before hosting League rival Lafayette at 7 p.m. Friday.

Navy The Midshipmen went 1-2 last week with a 3-0 win at Coppin State on Tuesday. Navy's two losses came in League play, falling 3-1 to Colgate on Friday and 3-0 to Bucknell on Saturday. The Midshipmen will continue League play with a home match against American at 7 p.m. on Friday.