Falcons Split Opening Day of Service Academy Challenge

Sept. 12, 2015

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Air Force volleyball team split the opening day of action at the Service Academy Challenge on Friday, Sept. 11, in Washington, D.C. The Falcons dropped a five-set heartbreaker to Army in the afternoon, but rebounded to sweep Harvard in the nightcap.

In the day's first match, the Falcons took a 26-24, 25-21 advantage over Army, before the Black Knights responded with 28-26, 25-18, 17-15 wins to complete the 3-2 comeback victory.

Senior Akokwe Clement registered a career-high 27 kills to lead all players in the match against the Black Knights, while freshman Elizabeth Pennington and sophomore Shelley Spires accounted for totals of 14 and 13, respectively. Senior Raquel Rosas, who paced the Falcons with a .562 hitting percentage, nearly reached the 10-kill plateau with nine scores (9k-0e-16a).

The Falcons' offense received assistance from freshmen Sarah Hellman and Shanleigh Conlan, who combined for 65 of the team's 69 assists. Hellman accounted for 40 helpers, while Conlan added 25. Conlan, who added a pair of service aces to her stat line, was one of four Falcons to register an ace in the match. Senior Rachael Bradley Powers collected three aces, while Clement accounted for two and classmate Taylor Parker notched one.

A trio of Falcons reached double figures in digs, including senior Rebecca Bates (17), Clement (10) and Bradley Powers (10). At the net, Parker accounted for five blocks, registering one solo stop and assisting on four others. Clement added a solo blocks, while Spires and Pennington both assisted on a pair.

Despite a short turnaround following the tough defeat to its sister service academy, Air Force returned to the court at the Pentagon Athletic Center to face Harvard, who also saw a 2-0 lead disappear in its opening-match loss to California. The Falcons came out strong, sweeping the Crimson in straight 26-24, 25-19, 25-23 sets.

Clement collected 15 kills to pace all players, while Spires added 12. Parker, who led the team with six blocks and two service aces, also registered a team-high hitting average of .462 after collected eight kills on 13 attempts with just two errors. Bradley Powers (15) and Bates (10) accounted for 25 digs, while Hellman (25) and Conlan (17) combined for all but one of the squad's assists.

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