ALBANY, N.Y.--The UMBC volleyball team put up a valiant effort,
but fell to Albany, 25-20, 25-21, 25-20, in the America East
Championship Saturday. It is the second time the Retrievers (12-17)
have finished second in the conference in seven years in the
AEC.
"I'm really proud of our girls on a great year," head coach Ian
Blanchard said. "There was just a couple things that Albany did
better than us today, but it doesn't diminish what we accomplished
this year."
All three sets were close midway through, but the Great Danes
were able to pull away in each set. Albany outhit the Retrievers
.185 to .102 and had 10 more digs, 91-81.
Senior Sabrina Hoeks
(Olympia, Wash./AG West Black Hills) led UMBC with 11 kills and 19
digs, her 15th double-double of the season. Junior Allie Spaay
(Kenosha, Wis./Kenosha Tremper) also recorded a double-double with
31 assists and 13 digs.
Sophomore Ali Loynachan
(Whitby, Ontario, Canada/Sinclair) was second on the team with nine
kills, while freshman Hallie
Carter (Huntington Beach, Calif./Edison) hit six kills with no
errors, while adding 16 digs. Both Hoeks and Carter were named to
the All-Tournament Team.
"None of what we did this year would have been possible without
the leadership of our captains (seniors Bianca Sande
(Rancho Sante Fe, Calif./Torrey Pines) and Hoeks and junior
Spaay)," Blanchard said. "We're really going to miss the two
seniors next year, but I'm excited for the future with the
foundation they've layed."
