Volleyball Opens Blackbird Invitational With Loss to San Francisco

(Box Score - San Francisco at Long Island)
(Box Score - St. Francis (NY) vs. Cornell)

9/22/06 -- The Long Island University volleyball team dropped the opening game of the Courtyard by Marriot LaGuardia Blackbird Invitational, falling 3-2 (30-28, 27-30, 27-30, 30-24, 15-11) to San Francisco at the Wellness, Recreation and Athletic Center. The Blackbirds gave the Dons, who are ranked 27th nationally, all they could handle before being edged out in the final game.

Junior Martina Wagner (Friedrichshafen, Germany) led a quartet of Blackbirds in double-figure kills with a game-high 23. She also contributed 19 digs, one shy of the game-high set by teammate freshman Svetlana Simic (Klek, Serbia), who had 20 to go along with 11 kills. Junior Shelby Heggie (Laramie, Wyo.) chipped in 22 kills.

After the Dons came away with a tight game one victory, Long Island (6-8) took a narrow 30-27 win away from game two. After another 30-27 LIU win in game three, it appeared the momentum, which had been a veritable teeter-totter, had swung in the Blackbirds favor.

San Francisco (14-1) managed a 30-24 win in the fourth stanza, to force the deciding game five. The Dons took an early lead, but Long Island grittily attempted a comeback. With San Francisco serving match point, the Blackbirds came back with four straight points to close the gap, but the Dons would prevail in the end.

San Francisco stretched its winning streak to 11 games, while the Blackbirds saw their losing streak reach four games.

In the second game of the tournament, Cornell swept St. Francis (N.Y.), 3-0 (30-11, 30-8, 30-14). Cornell's Alex Dyer led all players with 12 kills.