September 11, 2008 Issue                                       

©2007 The Chestnut Hill Local

Griffin volleyball nets long-awaited win
by TOM UTESCHER

Senior outside hitter Marianne Finfrock

Who could’ve anticipated this? Last Wednesday evening, Chestnut Hill College not only won its first volleyball match in 23 months, but did it in a three-set sweep in the 2008 home opener.

Despite the program’s previous performance, a fairly large crowd was on hand to witness the Griffins’ 25-11, 25-16, 25-15 win over the Rosemont College Ramblers, a victory that brought CHC’s record back up to 1-1.

Noting improvement since an opening-day loss at Ursinus, first-year CHC coach Kim Feeny said, “We definitely picked up our passing. We did a better job of getting the ball to our setters so that we were able to use our strong hitters. We’re trying to wipe the slate clean from last year and get the players to have greater aspirations and to expect more from themselves.”

Senior outside hitter Marianne Finfrock led the CHC offense at the outset, recording four of her six total kills during the first set. The focus then shifted to the middle of the net, as sophomore Nicole Corrado ramped up her game and wound up with a team high eight kills for the night.

Freshman Alyssa Miller was close behind with seven successful swats, and her classmate Katherine Tohanczyn was the primary setup woman for the winners, logging 19 assists for the evening.

As the only CHC player who is not a freshman or sophomore, Finfrock alone could recall the team’s last victory. Greg Gornick, CHC’s assiduous sports information director, dug out the date: Oct. 21, 2006. After an 0-18 showing the following fall, the Griffins came into the 2008 campaign with a new coaching staff comprised of Feeny and assistant Kerri McAleer.

On Wednesday, the Griffins got out to a modest 6-3 lead in the opening set, then took control with a 5-0 run that included two kills by Corrado and one by Finfrock, as well as a service ace by sophomore Cheryl Quarles. Quarles and fellow soph Cherise Bell would each make two scoring blocks during the match.

The Griffins’ consistency kept them on top while the Ramblers, who never scored more than two points in succession, couldn’t mount a meaningful comeback. CHC gained the last side-out it would need on a Finfrock hit that made it 23-11. The game ended when neither of two serves by Quarles was returned by Rosemont.

The visitors proved more tenacious in the second round, only trailing 10-6 about eight minutes into the bout, and then slipping back a little to 15-9. Only one of Rosemont’s points came on a bona fide kill, as the locals helped their guests stay in it with a number of errors, including four flawed serves.

Finally CHC opened up some daylight, as two Rambler miscues, a scoring pass by Corrado, and a hard, absolutely flat serve by Miller pushed the Griffins’ lead into double figures at 19-9. On subsequent kill attempts the Griffins hit the ball out over the baseline three times as the Ramblers tightened the score to 23-16. Rosemont then lost serve with a carry violation, and when CHC’s Finfrock put the ball in play, the Ramblers made an illegal fourth touch on the ball while it was still in their court.

Early in the third set, the Griffins served the ball into the net four times to help spot the visitors an 8-4 lead. The Ramblers then lost serve by belting one into the net themselves, and with Finfrock initiating play from the service line, Chestnut Hill took over the set by running off seven straight points. During this surge, three Finfrock serves stayed on Rosemont’s side of the net, and Corrado added two points by belting a routine kill and by stuffing a put-back into the opposing front line.

The Griffin offense sputtered a bit after that, and few minutes later, the Ramblers were still within four points of the leaders, 15-11. CHC picked up a point on a net violation by the Ramblers, and after a tip by Bell and a Rosemont error made it 18-11, the Griffins maintained a fairly comfortable lead the rest of the way.

“I think that to finally have a win under their belt will help them move forward,” observed CHC’s McAleer. “They’re doing a great job of listening to what we have to say and working to change their old habits.”