Oct. 19, 2009

Center Valley -- Army swept its two League matches last week to complete the first round of the League schedule with a 7-0 record.

As a result, Army's Fabiola Castro and Ariana Mankus swept the League's weekly awards.

Castro was named Player of the Week, while Mankus earned her fifth Rookie of the Week award.

Army will begin the second half of the League slate with a match against second-place Colgate (6-1) at noon Friday.

Complete Release in PDF Format

Player of the Week (10.12.09-10.18.09)

Fabiola Castro, Army  So., OH, Salinas, Calif./Salinas  Castro had a strong weekend leading Army to its 11th straight win, which included the Black Knights' 3-2 victory over the defending League champion American Eagles. Castro tallied 18 of her 30 kills on the week in the win. Five kills came in the fourth set, helping the Black Knights force a fifth set. She also had five digs and four blocks in the win. Castro's award is the fifth Player of the Week award to go to the League-leading Black Knights this season.

Rookie of the Week (10.12.09-10.18.09)

Ariana Mankus, Army Fr., OH, Lisle, Ill./Benet Academy  Mankus won her second straight and fifth overall Rookie of the Week award with her performance in two wins last week. Mankus posted 42 kills, including a career-high 26 in Army's win over defending League champion American Friday. She had six kills in the deciding fifth set against American, including the match point. She posted 16 kills in a win over Navy on Saturday. She also had 10 digs, two aces and a block last week.

Honorable Mention Performances Last Week

Krysta Cicala, American Fr., S, Northville, Mich./Louisiana Tech Cicala recorded 153 assists (11.77 per set) in three matches last week, including 59 in a win at Holy Cross. She also had 29 digs and three blocks.

Magdalena Tekiel, American Jr., OH, Warsaw, Poland  Tekiel posted 46 kills (3.83 per set) and 34 assists. She also had two service aces.

Megan Lynch, Holy Cross Fr., OH, Mendham, N.J./Mendham Lynch had 46 kills (3.83 per set) and 28 digs over three matches, including 21 against Quinnipiac.

Patriot League Notebook

Gate In The Way

Army rolled through the first half of the League schedule, winning all seven matches including Friday's 3-2 victory over the defending champion American Eagles. Now, as the second half of the schedule opens this Friday, the Black Knights find themselves in another big match, this time against the No. 2 team in the League -- Colgate (6-1). The Raiders' only blemish was a 3-1 loss to Army on Sept. 26. Army, which has won 11 straight matches and is 19-3 on the season, will host the rematch at noon Friday.

You Say Kaylee, I Say Kaleigh

It doesn't matter how you spell it -- Kaylee or Kaleigh -- both Colgate players have been hot over their last five matches. Since Colgate's four-set victory over American, Kaleigh Durket has hit .350 with 54 kills, 34 digs and 10 block assists, while Kaylee Dougherty has had 41 kills, a .262 hitting efficiency, four block solos and 13 block assists. Colgate posted its best hitting performance of the year in a three-set victory over Lafayette with a .422 (42-7-83), including a season-best nine service aces.

Fresh Leaders

It's getting younger among the top teams in the League this season. The League-leading Army Black Knights have been powered by five-time Rookie of the Week Ariana Mankus, while second-place Colgate has enjoyed the contributions from freshman Kaleigh Durket. Third-place American also has found a gem in setter Krysta Cicala, who is second the League in assists with 799 (10.51 per set). Mankus is the League leader in kills with 289 (3.66), while Durket is fifth 228 (3.17). Holy Cross freshman Megan Lynch also is in the top five in kills at No. 3 with 269 (3.32). Bucknell freshman Ragin Jackson is second in the League in blocks per set with 0.92 (58). Army has led the way in the freshman category by taking six of the first eight Rookie of the Week awards with Ariana Mankus winning five 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 845 assists in 2009, she has vaulted up to sixth place in League history with 3,878 career assists. She is 58 away from moving into fifth place and 502 away from tying the League record. Fanta is ranked eighth with 3,707 assists. Fanta's 3,707 assists is a school record at Colgate. Fanta is ranked sixth in the League in 2009 with 6.48 assists per set, while Bannon is second with 10.43. American freshman Krysta Cicala is first in the League with 10.51 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 1-2 overall last week and 1-1 in the League. American won at Holy Cross 3-1 on Saturday, but lost 3-1 to William & Mary on Tuesday and 3-2 to Army on Friday. Freshman Krysta Cicala led the Eagles with 153 assists (11.77 per set) over 13 sets. She hit a career-high mark of 59 in American's win over Holy Cross. She also had her first career double-double with 52 assists and 16 digs against Army. The Eagles will return to the court with two League contests on Friday and Saturday. They will host Lehigh at 7 p.m. Friday and Lafayette at 4 p.m. Saturday.

Army The Black Knights extended their winning streak to 11 matches with two wins last week, including a victory over the defending League champion American Eagles. Army took down American 3-2 Friday night at West Point and continued its success with a 3-0 sweep of Navy in the annual Star Match. The win over American was their fifth against the Eagles since 2005. Army celebrated Dig Pink -- breast cancer awareness -- on Saturday by debuting pink uniforms. In those pink uniforms, Army won its 16th match against Navy in their last 19 contests. The Black Knights will continue the League schedule with another marquee matchup when they host second-place Colgate at noon Friday. They also will host Bucknell at 4 p.m. Saturday.

Bucknell The Bison won two League matches last week and has now won three of their last four. Bucknell defeated Lafayette 3-0 on Friday and Lehigh 3-0 on Saturday. Kaitlin Segal led Bucknell with 19 kills and 26 digs over six sets. She notched a double-double against Lehigh, posting 10 kills and 15 digs. The Bison will return to the court with road matches at Holy Cross at 7 p.m. Friday and at Army at 4 p.m. Saturday.

Colgate The Raiders swept two League matches, defeating Lehigh 3-0 on Friday and Lafayette 3-0 on Saturday. Junior Casey Ritt had 10 blocks over the two matches, giving her 22 in her last five outings. With the two wins last week, Colgate has won four of its last five and eight of its last 12 after starting the season 1-6. The Raiders will return to the court with a big match against the League-leader, Army, at noon Friday. Colgate also will travel to Holy Cross at 2 p.m. Saturday.

Holy Cross The Crusaders went 1-2 last week, including a 3-0 League win over Navy on Friday. Holy Cross lost to Quinnipiac 3-2 in a non-League match on Tuesday and fell 3-1 to American on Saturday. Kathleen Colpoys led Holy Cross with 34 kills (11.33 per match). Her 14 kills against Quinnipiac were a career-best. The Crusaders will return to the court with back-to-back home League matches. They will host Bucknell at 7 p.m. on Friday and Colgate at 2 p.m. on Saturday.

Lafayette The Leopards were swept in three matches last week. Lafayette lost 3-0 to NJIT on Wednesday and followed with League losses at Bucknell (3-0) on Friday and at Colgate (3-0) Saturday. The Leopards will continue their League road trip with contests against Navy at 7 p.m. Friday and American at 4 p.m. Saturday.

Lehigh The Mountain Hawks went 0-2 last week, dropping two League matches. Lehigh lost 3-0 to Colgate on Friday and 3-1 to Bucknell on Saturday. Mo McReynolds led Lehigh with 18 kills and 13 digs over the two matches. The Mountain Hawks will return to the court with two League matches this week, traveling to American at 7 p.m. Friday and Navy at noon Saturday.

Navy The Midshipmen went 1-2 last week, picking up a non-League 3-1 win over Howard on Tuesday. Navy dropped both of its League matches, falling 3-0 to Holy Cross on Friday and 3-0 to Army on Saturday in the annual Star Match. The Midshipmen will look to bounce back with two League matches at home this week. They'll host Lafayette at 7 p.m. Friday  and Lehigh at noon Saturday.