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* MATCH SUMMARIES *

NA REPELS UPPER ST. CLAIR, 3-1, IN QUARTERFINALS

(11/1/1) The North Allegheny Lady Tigers bounced the Upper St. Clair Panthers from the WPIAL Playoffs on Tuesday night with a 3-1 victory at Chartiers Valley in the quarterfinals. Upper St. Clair did a good job of keeping pace with the Lady Tigers in sets one and two, but NA’s depth and talent would eventually take hold and wear down USC by match’s end.  North Allegheny claimed the victory with set scores of 25-23, 24-26, 25-17 and 25-17.

Leading the way for the Lady Tigers was senior Katie Best who hammered 17 kills against the Panthers.  Best was equally effective on defense with 15 digs.  Kristen Mitchell was the team leader in digs with 24, while Claire Bradhaw chipped in with 13 digs, seven kills and three assists.  Setter Maura Nolan posted 40 assists in the victory.

The Lady Tigers return to the WPIAL semifinals and will face the defending champion Pine-Richland Rams.  Section 3 will again be well represented in the semifinals with NA, Pine-Richland and Seneca Valley all reaching the final four.  North Allegheny's battle with Pine-Richland will be held on Thursday night and will be carried live via the internet on the North Allegheny Sports Network. 

MATCH SUMMARY

NORTH ALLEGHENY – 3  UPPER ST. CLAIR – 1
 

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LADY TIGERS SADDLE COLTS WITH
FIRST ROUND LOSS

(10/26/11) Thanks in part to an outstanding hitting night by sophomore Danielle Wall, the North Allegheny Lady Tigers outlasted the scrappy Chartiers Valley Colts, 3-0, in the first round of the Class AAA Volleyball playoffs.  Chartiers Valley entered the match Wednesday night as the 13-seed in the bracket but played well on the big stage of the playoffs, giving the Lady Tigers all they could handle.  Making their first playoff appearance since 2001, the Colts would eventually buckle to Wall and the Tigers by the end of each set.  North Allegheny claimed set wins of 25-21, 25-23 and 25-23.

The Tigers pounced on the Colts for a 10-4 lead in the opening set and appeared ready to cruise against their underdog opponent, but Chartiers Valley, behind a pair of kills by Alaina Pandl, rallied to tie the scored at 14-14.  The teams would trade jabs for the next few minutes, with the score remaining tied at 16-16 before NA began to pull away.  Wall, on her way to 10 kills on the night, earned three kills over the set’s stretch run to help lift NA to a 25-21 victory.  Wall was named the Wright Automotive Player of the Match by the North Allegheny Sports Network.  Senior Sarah Swartz was another major factor in the opening set with three kills and a block, delivering the game ending kill.

As she did in the set prior, Wall hammered three kills for the Lady Tigers to put NA in front 15-9 in the second set.  Char Valley’s Stephanie Solt pulled the Colts back in the game with a pair of kills to help tie the score late at 22-22.  The North Allegheny bench came up huge in this set as sophomore Jamie Robatisin smoked a kill past the Colts to pull NA ahead, 23-22.  After CV answered to tie the score again, junior Katie Humes came through with a kill to bring the Lady Tigers to game point, 24-23.  The kill was one of three for Humes in the set.  With the set victory within reach, senior Claire Bradshaw wrapped things up with a block as NA claimed a 25-23 win.

Things would once again go down to the wire in set three, which was easily the most tightly contested of the night.  The Lady Tigers trailed 22-21 before Bradshaw garnered a kill to knot up the score at 22-22.  Katie Best posted a block and Maura Nolan a kill to up the score to 24-22, Tigers.  CV pulled to 24-23 when Erin Swartz pushed a well placed shot just inside the sideline to finish off the pesky Colts for good, 25-23.

Along with Wall’s 10 kills, Bradshaw ended the night with five of her own, and Erin Swartz posted five.  Junior setter Maura Nolan provided her teammates with plenty of good hitting opportunities by notching 27 assists.  Defensively, Best and libero Kristen Mitchell were terrific covering the entire floor and combining for 42 digs. 

North Allegheny improves to 12-5 on the season and will advance to the quarterfinals on Tuesday night to face Upper St. Clair.   The Lady Tigers defeated the Panthers 3-0 earlier this season on October 3. The site and time of the quarterfinal match-up is to be determined.        

MATCH SUMMARY

NORTH ALLEGHENY – 3  CHARTIERS VALLEY – 0

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LADY TIGERS CUT DOWN TITANS
ON SENIOR NIGHT

(10/20) The Lady Tigers Girls Volleyball Team added one more regular season win to their tally before this weekend’s North Allegheny Invitational.  In a match-up of two playoff bound teams, the Lady Tigers easily handled the Shaler Lady Titans, 3-0, on Thursday night.  North Allegheny’s seniors came up big on Senior Night, helping set down the Titans with wins of 25-13, 25-14 and 25-19. 

The Lady Tigers wasted little time jumping on top of Shaler as Kristen Mitchell opened the match with a pair of aces to put NA ahead, 2-0, in the opening set.  NA built their lead up to 13-4 with help from senior Katie Best who posted a pair of kills and an ace.  Shaler’s Tori and Liz Kline brought the Lady Titans back to within 13-10 with several kills on a six point run.  However, North Allegheny got back to business and ran away with the rest of the set for a 25-13 victory.

In set two, Charlotte Gillespie, Sarah Swartz and Claire Bradshaw contributed toward another set that was dominated by NA, in particular the seniors.  While Shaler narrowed the gap to 10-9, the Lady Tigers once again hammered away on their opponent for a lopsided win.  Bradshaw smoked two kills and scored four aces in the set against the Titans who were befuddle by Bradshaw’s serves.  Gillespie and Swartz combined for three kills and a block, and the Lady Tigers finished off the set with an ace from senior Ali Karsh.

Shaler started to rally in the third set for an early 4-2 lead, but the relentless Tigers pounded away with kills by Best, Bradshaw and junior Morgan Fischer.  Freshman Meg Morningstar and junior Jen Spearman got into the mix as well with a kill and an ace to lift NA to a 25-19 win to wrap up a solid victory for the Lady Tigers.  Of all the senior standouts in the victory, the North Allegheny Sports Network chose Claire Bradshaw as the Wright Automotive Player of the Game.  Bradshaw finished the night with an unofficial six aces, four kills and a block.

North Allegheny concludes the regular season with an 11-5 record, while Shaler drops to 7-9 overall.  The Lady Tigers will host the North Allegheny Invitational this weekend with about a dozen WPIAL teams taking part in the tournament.  Action gets underway at 8:30 am on Saturday.           

MATCH SUMMARY

NORTH ALLEGHENY – 3  SHALER – 0

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NA CRUSHES NORTH HILLS IN SECTION FINALE

(10/18) In a terrific all-around showing, the North Allegheny Lady Tigers concluded their section schedule with a 3-0 victory over the North Hills Indians on Tuesday night.  Nine different players chipped in with kills on the evening, including Maura Nolan who was also the key distributor.  The junior setter dished out the ball equally to all of the Lady Tigers, posting 20 assists for the game, while adding five kills of her own and two aces.  For her efforts, Nolan was named the Wright Automotive Player of the Game.   

Ranked third by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and ninth on the MSA Top Ten, the Lady Tigers were certainly the favorites against the underdog Indians.  However, North Hills traded blows with North Allegheny throughout most of the opening set.  The Indians managed to keep the game close, leading 19-18 before North Allegheny claimed six of the next seven points for the set victory.  Among the final six points scored by the Lady Tigers, Danielle Wall notched a kill, senior Claire Bradshaw hammered a pair of kills, Nolan posted two aces, and senior Katie Best finished off the Indians with a kill for the 25-20 win.  Bradshaw ended the night with a team high six kills. 

From that point on, the Lady Tigers asserted their dominance over the Indians by coasting to a 25-15 win in set two and a 25-13 win in set three.  In the third set, North Hills actually led 6-1 before the Lady Tigers rolled off 24 of the final 31 points scored.  Among the NA big hitters, Erin Swartz, Sara Swartz, Katie Sterr, Ashley Leto and Jamie Robatisin all posted kills.  Ali Karsh did a fabulous job with her serves, keeping the Indians off balanced with three aces and Jessica Samuels played well late in the game, seeing some time at setter.

The win improves North Allegheny’s record to 10-5 overall and 6-4 in section play.  North Hills falls to 2-8 in the section and has finished their regular season schedule.  The Lady Tigers will next face Shaler at home on Thursday night in a game that will be carried live via the internet on the North Allegheny Sports Network.  Action gets underway at 7:00 pm.      

MATCH SUMMARY

NORTH ALLEGHENY – 3  NORTH HILLS– 0

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SENECA VALLEY UPENDS NA, 3-0

(10/13) The North Allegheny Lady Tigers fell to the Seneca Valley Raiders on Wednesday night, 3-0.  Having already clinched a playoff berth, North Allegheny falls to 9-5 overall and 5-4 in section play.  The Raiders currently sit atop the section with an 8-1 mark and 10-1 overall record.  North Allegheny will round out their section schedule with a home match on Tuesday night against rival North Hills.  The match will be covered live via the internet on the North Allegheny Sports Network.  Action gets underway at 7:00 pm. 

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LADY TIGERS CRUSH TALBOTS, 3-0

(10/11) The North Allegheny Lady Tigers rolled over the winless Hampton Talbots, 3-0, on Monday night at NASH gymnasium.  North Allegheny stormed out of the gates against Hampton for wins of 25-9, 25-15 and 25-20.

The Lady Tigers were led by senior Katie Best’s nine digs, eight kills and four aces in a terrific all around performance.  Senior Katie Sterr was strong with seven kills and the Swartz sisters, Erin and Sarah, combined for 10 kills and 2.5 blocks.  Defensively, Rachel Samuels notched nine digs and Kristen Mitchell posted seven.  Junior setter Maura Nolan was once again the team leader in assists with 18 and Claire Bradshaw contributed seven assists.

The win was the fifth for the Lady Tigers in their last six matches, pushing their overall record to 9-4.  Their 5-3 section record is good for third place in the conference, behind Seneca Valley and Pine-Richland.  North Allegheny will return to the court on Wednesday when travel to face the first place Raiders.  The match begins at 7:00 pm. 

MATCH SUMMARY

NORTH ALLEGHENY – 3  HAMPTON– 0

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LADY TIGERS BLOCK BUTLER, 3-0

(10/7) The North Allegheny Girls’ Volleyball Team locked up a playoff spot on Thursday night with a 3-0 victory over the Butler Golden Tornado.  The Lady Tigers claimed the match with set wins of 25-14, 25-13, and 28-26.

As usual, North Allegheny received strong play in the middle by sophomore Erin Swartz who led the team with nine kills and two blocks.  Senior Katie Best was solid throughout with eight kills, five digs and 1.5 blocks.  Claire Bradshaw was big in the Lady Tigers opening set win, finishing the match with five kills and eight digs.  Off the bench, Ashley Leto notched five kills and Jamie Robatisin posted four kills as well.  Junior setter Maura Nolan scored 34 assists and three aces, while libero Kristen Mitchell came through with 13 digs.

The win improves North Allegheny’s record to 8-4 overall and 4-3 in section play.  Butler falls to 3-4 in the section.  The Lady Tigers will try to continue their winning ways on Monday night against Hampton.  Action gets underway at 7:00 pm at NASH.     

MATCH SUMMARY

NORTH ALLEGHENY – 3  BUTLER– 0

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NA DROPS MEETING WITH PINE-RICHLAND, 3-0

(10/5) Led by standout setter Hannah Muzzonigro, a Notre Dame recruit, the Pine-Richland Rams defeated North Allegheny 3-0 on Tuesday night.  The Lady Tigers stayed close with the Rams in every set, but in each game Pine-Richland had just enough to hold off NA with wins of 25-16, 25-19 and 25-18.

In set one, the serves of Abby Dix helped the Rams jump to a 16-5 lead over the Tigers.  However, North Allegheny would climb back into the game on a rally that trimmed the PR lead to 20-15.  The rally was spurred on by a block and kill by Claire Bradshaw, an Erin Swartz block, a tapper by Katie Best and a kill by Daniel Wall.  However, the Lady Tigers could come no closer as a kill by Chloe DiPasquale gave the Rams a 25-16 victory in the opening set. 

Things were much tighter in set two as the Tigers received good bench play from Katie Humes and Ashley Leto.  Midway through the set, Humes belted a pair of kills and Leto delivered three kills and a block to lift North Allegheny to a 15-11 lead.  For her efforts, Leto was named the Wright Automotive Player of the Game by the North Allegheny Sports Network. Despite the efforts of Humes and Leto, Pine-Richland would battle back and eventually claim the set by a 25-19 score thanks to four kills by Kara Peters.

The Tigers would scrap back and forth with the Rams in the third set with the sharp serves of Kristen Mitchell and Ali Karsh keeping PR off balance, putting NA on top, 11-8.  Swartz, who was strong throughout the night from her middle block position, denied the Rams several times and scored three kills in the set.  This time though, it was PR’s Caitlin Scoscia that provided the winning points for the Rams, delivering five kills, including the game winner to bring the final to 25-18 in the third and final set.

The loss drops North Allegheny to a 7-4 overall and 3-3 in Section 3.  Pine-Richland improves to 5-1 in the section and has a rematch with Seneca Valley on Thursday night.  The Lady Tigers will look to return to their winning ways with a home match against Butler on Thursday.  Action gets underway at 7:00 pm at NASH.      

MATCH SUMMARY

PINE-RICHLAND – 3  NORTH ALLEGHENY– 0

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LADY TIGERS CLAW TO WIN OVER PANTHERS, 3-0

(10/4) In an exciting non-section match on Monday night, the North Allegheny Lady Tigers held off the Upper St. Clair Panthers, 3-0.  While it was a straight sets victory for NA, it didn’t come without a see-saw battle in the final two sets.  The Lady Tigers claimed the win with scores of 25-17, 25-23 and 27-25.

The opening set was far from a breeze, but it did come with the largest margin of victory for NA as the Tigers were able to pull away late.  With the Lady Tigers clinging to a 14-13 lead, Rachel Samuels posted a kill that got North Allegheny rolling.  Samuels added another kill to help NA grab 10 of the final 13 points scored in the match.  Katie Best posted a kill and a pair of aces in the opening set victory.

In set two, it was Danielle Wall and Erin Swartz who performed well in the late stages, combining for four kills down the stretch.  The Tigers were trailing 23-22 when Swartz came through with a kill to even the score.  Claire Bradshaw followed that with a huge ace to give NA the lead at 24-23.  The Tigers closed out the second set when USC had a hit out of bounds to give NA the set win, 25-23.

In another nip and tuck affair, set three also went down to the wire.  The lead changed hands five times, with the score tied throughout much of the set.  North Allegheny trailed by as much of 17-14 before a USC error and kills by Wall and Katie Humes tied the score at 17-17.  The score fluctuated until NA could seize control with the game tied 25-25.  A late kill and another USC error handed the Lady Tigers a hard fought non-section victory.

With the win, North Allegheny improves to 7-3 with win and now awaits a meeting tonight with the defending WPIAL champions, the Pine-Richland Lady Rams.  Action gets underway at 7:00 pm.  The match will be carried live via the internet on the North Allegheny Sports Network. 

MATCH SUMMARY

NORTH ALLEGHENY – 3  UPPER ST. CLAIR– 0

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LADY TIGERS TAKE THIRD AT
STATE COLLEGE INVITATIONAL

(10/3/11) The North Allegheny Girls Volleyball Team visited central Pennsylvania over the weekend to challenge 19 other top teams from across the state in the State College Tournament.  The Lady Tigers came away with a third place showing from the tournament, including victories over Grove City, Cumberland Valley and Carlisle in pool competition.  NA advanced out of pool play into the Gold Bracket Playoffs where they defeated by Susquehannock in the quarterfinals, 25-23, before falling to defending state champion Hempfield, from District 3, in the tournament semifinal. 

Turning in some great performances on the day were outside hitters Katie Best and Claire Bradshaw.  Best delivered a team high seven kills in the Gold Bracket matches while Bradshaw was strong in all facets of the game, posting eight digs, five assists, one ace and one kill.  Also during the Gold Bracket matches, junior defensive specialist Kristen Mitchell claimed 25 digs, with support from Rachel Samuels on the defensive end.  Junior setter Maura Nolan was again solid, putting middle hitters like Erin Swartz in the best position to hammer the opposition.  Nolan marked up 18 assists while Swartz scored six kills with her heavy swings and posted four blocks.   

North Allegheny will play host to the Upper St. Clair Panthers tonight in a non-section affair.  Action gets underway at 7:00 pm at NASH. 

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LADY TIGERS EARN SECTION WIN
OVER NORTH HILLS

(9/29/11) The North Allegheny Lady Tigers went on the road to nearby North Hills and claimed a 3-0 win over the Indians on Tuesday night.  The victory jumps NA's record to 6-3 overall and 3-2 in Section 3.  The Lady Tigers are currently in third place, just a half-game behind Pine-Richland in the section standings.  North Hills drops to 1-4 overall and in section play.  Up next for North Allegheny, a weekend outing at the State College Tournament. 

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NA WINS JOUST WITH KNIGHTS, 3-0

(9/27/11) North Allegheny took down the Norwin Knights in straight sets for a 3-0 victory on Monday night.  North Allegheny improves to 5-3 on the season.  The Lady Tigers face the North Hills Indians tonight on the road.  Action gets underway at 7:00 pm.

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LADY TIGERS BUMPED BY TOP-RANKED SENECA VALLEY

(9/22/11) In a hard fought match-up, the Lady Tigers fell to the top-ranked Seneca Valley Raiders, 3-0, on Thursday night.  Coming off a win over the defending WPIAL Class AAA champion Pine-Richland Rams, the Raiders followed that up with a victory over another top contender with straight set wins, 25-19, 25-16 and 25-20. 

The Tigers were hoping to earn a measure of revenge against Seneca Valley, the team that knocked NA out of the playoffs last season in the semifinals.  The night started out well for the Lady Tigers in set one with a block by Erin Swartz and Claire Bradshaw to give NA a 1-0 lead.  Seneca Valley took a 5-3 lead before too long, but the Tigers evened the score at 5-5 behind a block and a kill by Swartz.  The Raiders again went on a run, claiming a 17-9 lead that was punctuated on a Laura Thomas kill for SV.  After a timeout, the Tigers rallied with another two kills from Swartz and a kill by Bradshaw to help close the gap to 19-16.  A standout for the Raiders throughout the night, Alex Karika followed with a kill to put Seneca Valley ahead 20-16.  In an exceptional volley between the two teams, Bradshaw kept the ball alive for NA with several digs before Danielle Wall hammered a kill to bring the score to 20-17, Raiders.  However, the Tigers would come no closer as Cate Seman closed out the set with a kill to give the Raiders a 25-19 opening set win.

Any thoughts of bouncing back in set two didn't look good early as Seneca Valley jumped to a 6-0 lead.  Although NA rolled off six straight points of their own with the help of Swartz, Bradshaw and Katie Best who all notched kills.  The sixth point came on a Kristen Mitchell ace, who's line drive serves gave the Raiders fits all night.  The teams traded points as the score fluctuated but remained close throughout the second set.  Off the bench Katie Humes notched three kills, keeping NA in the contest with the score tied at 14-14.  As would be the trend throughout the night, the Tigers were either tied or trailing much of the game and the Raiders would regain their momentum.  Seneca Valley scored 11 of the last 13 points scored in the set due in large part of the serves from senior Laura Thomas.  Thomas notched a pair of aces late to help SV to a 25-16 victory in set two.

Despite losing the first two sets, the Lady Tigers kept their composure and worked to a 3-1 lead early in the third set on a Jessica Samuels ace and a kill from Best.  Seneca's Meghan Drambel earned a pair of kills to pit SV back ahead, 7-3.  Following a time out, Wall scored three of the Tigers next six points with two kills and block to bring NA back at 9-9.  An ace by Rachel Samuels, and additional kills by Bradshaw, Swartz and Best lifted NA to 14-12 lead, their biggest late game lead of the contest.  Best, a senior outside hitter for the Tigers, played well throughout the night and was among the team leaders with an unofficial six kills for the night.  For her efforts, Best was named the Wright Automotive Player of the Game. 

Meanwhile, a pair of kills from Karika helped Seneca Valley tie the score at 17-17.  Then the Raiders began to pull away again late as Drambel notched two more kills and Karika posted an ace to put SV in position to close things out with a 24-18 lead.  The Lady Tigers scored on a Maura Nolan kill and a block by Humes to stay alive at 24-20.  However, an NA error ended the game and Seneca Valley claimed the victory, 25-20 to earn their sixth win of the season.

The Raiders also improved to 4-0 in Section 3, while the Lady Tigers fall to 4-3 overall and 2-2 in section play.  Up next for North Allegheny is a non-section road meeting with Norwin on Monday night.  Action gets underway at 7:00 pm. 

MATCH SUMMARY

SENECA VALLEY – 3  NORTH ALLEGHENY – 0

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NA CRUSHES HAMPTON, 3-0

(9/21/11) North Allegheny won their second straight section game and made it look easy on Tuesday night with a 3-0 victory over the Hampton Talbots.  The road victory for the Lady Tigers came on scores of 25-9, 25-12 and 25-17. 

Following the season ending injury to Ava Mosbacher, head coach Heidi Miller did a little reshuffling of her lineup and the moves paid immediate dividends.  Senior Katie Best, now playing at an outside hitter position, led the Lady Tigers with seven kills on the night.  Best added an ace and dig to her credit as well.  Erin Swartz was very effective with six kills in nine attempts, while Rachel Samuels was the NA ace, boasting four serves that went unreturned by the Talbots.  Kristen Mitchell posted three aces of her own.  Samuels and Mitchell combined for 14 digs as well. 

The victory improves North Allegheny's record to 4-2 overall and 2-1 in section play.  Hampton falls to 2-4 overall and 0-3 in section competition.  The Lady Tigers will have a huge game at home on Thursday night as NA welcomes the undefeated Seneca Valley Raiders.  Thursday’s match will begin at 7:00 pm and will feature some promotional and free concession giveaways, including free T-shirts that will be thrown into the crowd before the match.  The contest will also be broadcast live via the internet on the North Allegheny Sports Network. 

MATCH SUMMARY

NORTH ALLEGHENY – 3  HAMPTON – 0

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LADY TIGERS EARN WIN OVER BUTLER, LOSE MOSBACHER FOR SEASON

(9/16/11) The North Allegheny Girls Volleyball team earned their first section win of the year with a 3-0 defeat of Butler last night.  North Allegheny swept through the Golden Tornado with straight set wins of 25-17, 25-22, and 25-19. 

The Lady Tigers were led by sophomore Danielle Wall and senior Claire Bradshaw who posted nine kills apiece.  Junior Rachel Samuels posted double digit in digs with 10, followed closely behind by junior Kristen Mitchell and senior Katie Best who notched nine digs each.  The win came at a cost however as North Allegheny has lost the services of junior Ava Mosbacher.  The talented outside hitter suffered a leg injury in the match against Butler and will be out for the remainder of the season.  The North Allegheny Volleyball family wishes Mosbacher a speedy recovery.  Pressing forward, the Tigers will move Best to an outside hitting position and will return Mitchell to libero.  The Lady Tigers will certainly remain competitive but will have less of a "big" feel to the squad as NA will be without the big swings of Mosbacher. 

With the win, the Lady Tigers improve their section record to 1-1, while pushing their overall record to 3-2.  The volleyball team will return to action Tuesday night, traveling to Hampton for a section showdown with the Talbots. 

MATCH SUMMARY

NORTH ALLEGHENY – 3  BUTLER – 0

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GIRLS VOLLEYBALL NETS LOSS
AT PINE-RICHLAND

(9/13/11) The North Allegheny Girls Volleyball team fell in their section match at Pine-Richland on Tuesday night, 3-1.  The loss drops the Lady Tigers to 2-2 on the season, 0-1 within the section.  The girls will look for their first conference victory of the season on Thursday when they take on Butler.

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NA EARNS EXCITING 3-2 WIN OVER
MT. LEBANON

(9/12/11)  It went down to the wire, but the North Allegheny Girls Volleyball team claimed an exciting 3-2 victory at Mt. Lebanon on Monday night.  It was NA’s first five game victory of the season with the Lady Tigers winning the deciding fifth set by an 18-16 score.  The team offense looked impressive with big swings from sophomore Danielle Wall and junior Ava Mosbacher.  Wall posted 16 kills and Mosbacher closely followed with 15 of her own.  Erin Swartz ended notched a double-digit kill total with 10.  There was also excellent passing and defensive plays by Rachel Samuels, Katie Best who led with 15 digs, and Kristen Mitchell who earned 10 digs.  Mitchell was also dominant with her serves, keeping the Mt. Lebanon off balance with three aces.

The Lady Tigers, who now hold a record of 2-1 on the season, will try to ride the momentum of last night’s win into their first section contest of the year at Pine-Richland tonight.  Action gets underway at 7:00 pm.

JV Update: NA remains undefeated with a 2-0 win over Mt. Lebo.

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LADY TIGERS REBOUND WITH 3-1 VICTORY OVER FOX CHAPEL

(9/8/11) The first female head coach in North Allegheny volleyball history earned her first win on Thursday night as the Lady Tigers defeated Fox Chapel, 3-1, in a non-section game at NASH.  Career victory number one for coach Heidi Miller came on a night in which the Lady Tigers exhibited a complete performance against their opponent.  NA took down the Lady Foxes in four sets by scores of 25-17, 19-25, 25-16, 25-13. 

In a trend that continued throughout the night, North Allegheny jumped out to early leads in every set.  Sophomore Erin Swartz set the tone early for the Lady Tigers with dominating play in the middle.  On her way to an unofficial 14 kills and five blocks on the night, Swarz helped the Tigers to the opening set victory and was selected by the North Allegheny Sports Network as the Wright Automotive Player of the Match.  

In set two, the Lady Tigers grabbed an 11-5 lead in the early going, but Fox Chapel would battle back.  Coming off a playoff appearance last season under head coach Sara D'Angelo, the Lady Foxes played like a team again gunning for a playoff spot in the second set.  Behind strong play by Megan Hollingsworth and setter Erin Ross, Fox Chapel rallied to tie the score at 13-13. FC eventually pulled away late for a 25-19 win in the second set to even the match score at 1-1.

As they did in the first two sets, the NA Girls again leaped to an early lead in the third set.  Kills by Danielle Wall, Erin Swartz and Sarah Swartz helped North Allegheny to another 11-5 lead before the Foxes started to chip away once again.  After Fox Chapel trimmed NA's lead to 14-12, the Lady Tigers responded by taking command and rolling to a 25-16 victory.

The action in set four was dictated from the start by junior Ava Mosbacher who notched a trio of blocks and kills to lift North Allegheny to an 11-0 lead.  Never say die Fox Chapel would once again battle from behind to cut NA's lead to 15-11.  Wall answered the FC rally with a kill and soon after Claire Bradshaw scored an ace to regain the Tigers momentum.  With three kills and a block, Erin Swarz played a role in four of the last five points scored by NA to finish off the Foxes for the match victory. 

North Allegheny evened its record at 1-1 on the season with the win. Up next, the Lady Tigers Varsity team returns to action on Monday against Mt. Lebanon on the road.  Start time is slated for 7:00 pm.      

MATCH SUMMARY

NORTH ALLEGHENY – 3  FOX CHAPEL – 1

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NA LOSES HEARTBREAKER TO
PENN-TRAFFORD, 3-1

The Lady Tigers opened their volleyball schedule on Tuesday night at home, but suffered a heartbreaking 3-1 loss to the Penn-Trafford Warriors.  After winning the first game by a 25-20 score, NA narrowly dropped the next three sets, 19-25, 24-26, and 28-30.

Senior Claire Bradshaw had an impressive night by leading the team with 16 digs, 11 kills and three aces.  Other offensive standouts included senior Sarah Swartz who posted seven kills and sophomore Erin Swartz with nine kills.  Adding to the defensive play were junior Kristen Mitchell and junior Rachel Samuels who notched 14 digs. 

The Lady Tigers are 0-1 following the non-section loss and they will try to rebound on Thursday night with a non-section home match against Fox Chapel.  All the action begins at 7:00 pm and will be broadcast live on the North Allegheny Sports Network.    

MATCH SUMMARY

PENN-TRAFFORD – 3   NORTH ALLEGHENY – 1

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Any questions or comments should be directed to Athletic Director
Bob Bozzuto at:  bbozzuto@northallegheny.org