Senior Kim Todd led the Golden Eagles with 18 kills, while junior Ashlee Fisher and senior Jenn Brown chipped in with 14 and 12, respectively.,”The Marquette women's volleyball team defeated Notre Dame Friday night 3-1 (30-26, 20-30, 30-25, 31-29). The win improves the Golden Eagles record to 7-8 (4-2 Big East).
Senior Kim Todd led the Golden Eagles with 18 kills, while junior Ashlee Fisher and senior Jenn Brown chipped in with 14 and 12, respectively. Senior Katie Weidner totaled 53 assists in the contest.
It was the first time head coach Pati Rolf has ever beaten Notre Dame.
"In the six years I've been here we haven't beaten a significant team, like a Louisville, a Notre Dame, so personally it's a big day because Notre Dame is a stepping stone in the right direction," Rolf said.
Marquette went down early 7-10 in game one, but fought back and was in control from that point on, eventually winning on a service error by Notre Dame setter Ashley Tarutis.
Game two was a different story as Notre Dame went up early and never looked back, winning the game 30-20 on the strength of their .353 hitting percentage. The Golden Eagles did not help their cause by committing 11 errors in game two.
Game three went back and forth, with the Golden Eagles trailing 22-24 late in the game. But then Marquette turned it on and closed the game out with an 8-1 scoring run to take the game 30-25.
Game four was as close as it gets, and with the score tied at 28, Weidner sent a deep shot to the corner to give the Golden Eagles their first match point. Marquette could not cash in right away, but finally won the match 31-29 on a block by Brown.
"They fought, I think when we were in tough situations, Jenn Brown was the difference in the game," Rolf said.
Brown finished with a team high four block assists to go along with a .409 hitting percentage.
Friday's win was number 399 for Rolf, and she will be going for 400 against DePaul Sunday 2 p.m. at the Al McGuire Center.
"I'm just excited to have a win like this," Rolf said after the game. "Four hundred wins is just about longevity and just being in the sport and enjoying the sport."
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