Air Force Downs Samford in Volleyball Nightcap

USAF ACADEMY, Colo. – The Air Force volleyball team captured its 10th victory of the season this evening (Sept. 14) during a 3-1 win over Samford at the Academy. The Falcons, who swept the day's double-header, improved to 10-3 on the season with a 25-22, 20-25, 26-24, 25-18 victory over the visiting Bulldogs. With the victory, Air Force has claimed double-digit wins in each of the last five years – and seven times at the Division I level.

With two players hitting over .300 on the night, the Falcons hit .257 for the match – and outhit Samford by nearly 100 points. Senior Elizabeth Pennington hit a team-best .412 for the match (17-3-34), while classmate Abigail Miksch tallied a match-high 18 kills on .311 hitting (18-4-45). Junior Denise Ssozi added 14, as the trio accounted for 49 of the team's 58 kills.

Ssozi, who added 13 digs, was one of three Falcons to notch a double-double on the night, as sophomore Andi Ahlers and senior Shanleigh Conlan posted matching stat lines of 23 assists and 11 digs. Conlan and sophomore Jordan Daniels each notched a pair of aces, while senior Sarah Hellman collected a match-high 17 digs. Sophomore Cambria Galloway recorded seven blocks (one solo, six assisted), as Air Force combined for a season-high 15 total stops (five solo, 20 assisted).

Miksch opened the match with a pair of kills (2-1), but Samford took the lead and a four-point advantage at the 9-5 mark. Senior Lauren Heldt put down a kill and Conlan served up an ace to bring the Falcons within one (10-9) during a 4-1 run that also included a Heldt/Galloway block. Back-to-back aces from Daniels and a kill from Pennington evened the set at 13, while Ssozi put down a score to tie the set at 14. Samford scored five straight points to take the 20-15 lead, but the Falcons tied the set at 21 following kills from Miksch and freshman Bailey Keith. The pair added another set of kills, while Conlan served an ace to secure the 25-22 victory for the Falcons.

Air Force took an early 4-2 lead in the second set following kills from Pennington and Ssozi, while a score from Miksch gave the Falcons a three-point lead (9-6). Pennington added another kill, while Ssozi and Galloway teamed up for a block, but Samford evened the set at 12 and used a 7-1 run to take a 19-13 lead. Ssozi (two), Miksch (two) and Pennington (one) added kill, but Samford evened the set with a 25-20 win.

The trio tallied kills in the opening minute of the third set, but the Bulldogs jumped out to a fast 10-3 lead. With Hellman at the serving line, the Falcons forced the visitors into three straight errors – highlighted by a solo block by Miksch – and a timeout at the 13-10 mark. Heldt put down a kill and teamed up for a block with sophomore Kathleen Medill, while back-to-back scores from Pennington brought the Falcons within one (15-16). A solo stop by Ssozi tied the set at 17, while the squads traded the next several points, with ties at every point until the set was 24-all. Air Force scored the final two points – a kill by Pennington and a solo block by Medill – to take the 26-24 victory.

Samford scored the first three points of the fourth set and took an early 4-1 lead, before Galloway posted a kill and teamed up with Heldt for another block to tie the set at five. The Bulldogs retook the lead, but Pennington put down a kill to give Air Force a 9-8 advantage. Following a tie at 10-all, Air Force jumped out to a 16-11 advantage behind a Ssozi/Galloway block and kills from Ssozi, Pennington and Heldt. The Falcons pushed their lead to six twice (19-13, 20-14) with Miksch kills, while Pennington put down a pair of scores to help Air Force complete the victory with a 25-18 set win.

Air Force closes out its non-conference schedule tomorrow (Sept. 15) when it welcomes service academy rival Navy to the Academy for the first time since 2005 at 1:00 p.m. (MT).

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