Stetson senior setter Karla Readshaw (Huntington Beach, Calif.) recorded her second triple-double of the season to lead the Hatter volleyball team (11-15) to a four-game win over visiting Flagler in the team's season finale. Five players recorded at least 14 digs for Stetson, which ends the season with four consecutive wins. Game scores were 30-24, 28-30, 30-21, 32-30.
This late run marks the first time since October 2002 that Stetson has won four consecutive matches. The 11 wins for the Hatters in 2007 are also the most since going 15-14 in 2002.
In the final game, the Hatters led 23-17 but then had to weather five consecutive Flagler points to draw within one. Stetson then went ahead 29-26 but the Saints rallied again with three straight points to tie the game; a run of play indicative of the closeness of the whole match. Eventually Stetson recorded the final point of the 2007 season on a block by seniors Gina Iacona (Boca Raton, Fla./Spanish River HS) and Beth Slabaugh (Dearborn, Mich.)
“It's fitting that Gina and Beth, our seniors, were able to get the final point in their last match,” Head Coach Cheryl Carlson said. “Karla and Rachel (Miller) played great again as usual.”
Defense was the story of the night on both sides as the Hatters and Saints combined for a whopping 208 digs in four games, including a team-high 22 by Readshaw. She added a match-high 49 assists and made 10 kills without an attack error (.417) to reach the triple-double mark for the second time in the season and her career; against UNF on August 25 she had 32 assists, 17 digs and 10 kills. She finishes her season with 948 assists, cracking the 900 mark for the second year in a row.
Junior outside hitter Rebecca Orzechowicz (Miami, Fla./Gulliver Prep HS) had 13 kills and 15 digs for her 15th double-double of the season while Slabaugh made seven kills and set career highs with four assists and 19 digs in her final match for the Hatters. Iacona recorded a season-best six blocks to go along with 13 kills. Sophomore Sarah Sears (Ashburn, Va.) had nine kills and hit .304 in the match. Sophomore Laura Boyd (La Crescenta, Calif.) had 10 kills and got in on four blocks. The Hatters blocked 10 Flagler swings, the fourth time this season they have reached that figure.
“Our blocking got so much better as the season went on and it was the biggest reason why we were able to finish with four straight wins,” Carson noted.
Justine Burkhardt (14 kills, 25 digs) and Katie Beale (14 kills, 24 digs) had double-doubles for Flagler, as did setter Audrey Hippensteel (36 assists, 11 digs). Libero Liz Moyer collected a match-high 29 digs.
Stetson loses Iacona, Miller, Readshaw and Slabaugh to graduation but also returns four players who started or otherwise saw significant action this season: Boyd, Orzechowicz, Sears, libero Melanie Boyer (New Holland, Ill.).
