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Head Coach Kelly Sheffield earned his 200th career victory on Friday. |
Box Score
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Dayton volleyball Head Coach Kelly Sheffield earned his 200th career win on Friday evening after a five-set battle with Santa Clara to open the 2010 Notre Dame Invitational (25-12, 19-25, 25-16, 21-25, 15-9).
It was senior middle blocker Lindsay Fletemier who carried the Flyers to Sheffield’s 200th win, recording her first double-double of the season with season-highs of 17 kills and 11 blocks. Only recording two attacking errors, Fletemier ended the match with a .455 hitting percentage and a match-high 22.5 points.
Blocking career-highs from senior setter Jessica Yanz (6) and sophomore outside hitter Rachel Krabacher (6) allowed UD to out-block Santa Clara 16.0-to-5.0 and set a season-high in team blocks. Yanz also added 15 digs and a career-high of 53 assists for her sixth double-double of the season.
A total of four Flyers reach double-digit kills, including Fletemier’s 17 and Krabacher’s 11. Senior outside hitter Amanda Cowdrey was one of four Flyers with a double-doubles on Friday, recording 10 kills and leading UD in digs with 18. Senior middle blocker Becky Novacek had a line of 14 kills, five blocks, 16.5 points and a .379 hitting percentage.
The Flyers jumped off to a dominating start in the first set, recording a .520 hitting percentage without an attacking error and holding the Broncos to a -.028 hitting percentage for a 25-12 victory.
With adjustments made on both sides of the bench throughout the match, the tables turned in the second set as Santa Clara hit .310 to UD’s attack rate of .083, which evened the match at one set a piece, 19-25. The momentum changed yet again after intermission as UD’s defense held Santa Clara to a sub-.000 hitting percentage for a 25-16 Flyer victory. The fourth set featured 15 ties and five lead changes before the Broncos used a 5-1 run to end the set and forcing Dayton’s second five-set match of the season.
In the final set, Dayton left little doubt of ensuring Sheffield’s 200th career victory after jumping off to an 8-2 lead and eventually defeating the Broncos 15-9. UD recorded 14 kills out of the 15 points with just one error for an attack rate of .433 in the final stanza.
Sheffield -- in his third season with Dayton and 10th overall -- holds a 200-99 career record. Before arriving in Dayton, Sheffield compiled 142 wins at the University of Albany. Sheffield was the fastest UD volleyball head coach to reach 50 wins, doing so in less than two seasons.
It was the first meeting between Dayton (7-3) and Santa Clara (6-4).
The Flyers return to action in the Notre Dame Invitational on Saturday at 4:30 p.m. ET against Delaware.
