Nov. 5, 2004

New Haven, Conn. - The Yale volleyball team hit for a its best percentage of the season and won its third straight match, defeating Dartmouth in three games (30-20, 30-23, 30-26) at John J. Lee Amphitheater.

Outside hitters Jana Freeman and Shannon Farrell led the Bulldogs (11-7, 6-4 Ivy) with 16 kills and 11 digs each, as Yale outhit Dartmouth, .333-.197. Sandy Barbut notched 13 kills and 14 digs to pace the Big Green (5-16, 2-9). The Bulldogs' previous best hitting performance was .327 Sept. 25, in a 3-0 win against Wagner.

Yale's Lauren Burke had a match-high .412 hitting percentage with eight kills and five blocks. Kali Nelson hit .385 with 13 kills, while Freeman hit .364 and Farrell .342. Jacqueline Becker racked up 52 assists, and Anja Perlebach added 23 digs.

"We got good hitting contributions from many of our players," said Yale coach Erin Appleman, whose team is now 7-1 at home. "Anja stepped up her game big time, and I was also pleased with our ball control."

Yale took control of the match early. Leading 7-6 in the first game, the Elis won the next five points. After the Big Green cut the lead to 17-15, Yale used another 5-0 run to put the game out of reach. The Bulldogs had four blocks in the game and held Dartmouth to a .080 hitting percentage. Freeman posted seven kills.

In Game 2, the Bulldogs won six straight points to go from a 7-7 tie to a six-point lead, and Dartmouth never again got closer than four points. The Bulldogs hit .396, led by Nelson's .583 clip with eight kills. Becker had 18 assists in the game.

The third game was tied as late as 18-all, but Yale won three points in a row and never looked back. Yale jumped out to a 6-1 lead when freshman Maribeth Martens kept the play alive with a dig, Becker made a long run to set Freeman, who registered the kill. The Big Green got back in the match, but could not overcome Yale's .354 hitting percentage and Perlebach's 10 digs in the game.

Martens had nine digs in the match, and Becker had 10, as Yale outdug Dartmouth, 75-61. The Elis had 62 kills to the Big Green's 40.

Yale returns to the court for its last weekend home match of the season Saturday against first-place Harvard at 4 p.m. The Bulldogs will recognize seniors Freeman and Burke for their accomplishments over the last four years.

report by Casey Hart, Yale Sports Publicity