LAKEWOOD, N.J. - The Caldwell College volleyball team swept Holy Family University, 25-10, 25-14, 27-25 to capture the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference Tournament championship Saturday afternoon at Georgian Court University. The tournament title is the first in the five-year history of the program. The Cougars (24-7) will receive the conference's automatic berth to the NCAA Division II East Region Tournament, which begins Nov. 18.
Caldwell's offense started the match on fire, registering 15 kills without an error in 22 attempts in the first set, good for a stout .682 hitting percentage. The Tigers (21-10) managed only six kills in the set, which Caldwell won handily 25-10. The second set was similar, with Caldwell building leads of 10-5 and 17-12 before taking a commanding 22-12 advantage en route to the 25-14 win. Again the Cougars were efficient offensively, with 13 kills against just two errors in 30 attempts (.367).
Holy Family bounced back in the third set, taking a 10-5 lead early on. Caldwell eventually tied the score at 12-12, and the two teams exchanged points until the Tigers took a 23-20 lead. Again the Cougars came back with three straight points to tie the score at 23-23. Following a kill by Jill Keeve that gave Holy Family set point, sophomore right side Amber Mosher (Flanders, NJ/Mount Olive) tallied a kill to tie the score at 24-24. The set was still tied at 25-25 when junior middle blocker Titilola Alao (Ossining, NY/Ossining) put down another kill to set up match point for Caldwell. At the end of a long rally, senior outside hitter Cory Roesing (Secaucus, NJ/Secaucus) lofted the ball over the Holy Family players and into the backcourt for the championship point.
"Winning the CACC Tournament has always been our goal, and to win it this year with this group of seniors is fitting," said coach Megan Hrbek, who was named the CACC Coach of the Year after leading the Cougars to their third straight North Division crown. "The seniors started out 4-24 as freshmen, and they put in the commitment and hard work necessary to improve. I'm happy that they will finish their careers as CACC champions and will have an opportunity to play in the NCAA Regional."
Sophomore outside hitter Susan McDonough (Saline, MI/Saline) led all players with 11 kills and was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player. Mosher, who delivered 10 kills and a .476 hitting percentage, also made the all-Tournament team, as did junior setter Lauren Roth (Findlay, OH/Findlay), who dished out 36 assists. Defensively, sophomore libero Maddy Amon (Louisville, KY/Bishop Moore) racked up 19 digs. Caldwell hit .363 as a team for the match, compared to .054 for the Tigers, who were led by Keeve's 10 kills.
Caldwell, which started the volleyball program in 2006 and went 4-41 over its first two seasons of existence, will play in the NCAA Division II East Region Tournament next week.
CC - 25 25 27
HFU - 10 14 25
CACC Volleyball Tournament
Quarterfinals
Tuesday, Nov. 9
No. 1N Caldwell 3, No. 4N Nyack 0
No. 3N Bloomfield 3, No. 2N Dominican 2
No. 1S Holy Family 3, No. 4S Georgian Court 0
No. 2S Philadelphia 3, No. 3S Wilmington 0
Semifinals (at Georgian Court, Lakewood, NJ)
Friday, Nov. 12
No. 1N Caldwell 3, No. 2S Philadelphia 1
No. 1S Holy Family 3, No. 3N Bloomfield 0
Finals (at Georgian Court, Lakewood, NJ)
Saturday, Nov. 13
No. 1N Caldwell 3 No. 1S Holy Family 0
CACC all-Tournament Team
Susan McDonough, Caldwell - Tournament MVP
Amber Mosher, Caldwell
Lauren Roth, Caldwell
Jill Keeve, Holy Family
Aimee Drabyn, Holy Family
Lauren Hoover, Philadelphia
Da'Cheray Thomas, Bloomfield
Amy Berry, Georgian Court
Yashani Smith, Dominican
Moana Masoniai, Nyack
Nicole Wiechecki, Wilmington
