RAMS SURGE PAST MARQUETTE IN DAY TWO OF DUKE TOURNEY
8-26-06
Box Score

DURHAM, N.C. – Senior outside hitter Ludmila Francescatto (Fraiburga, Brazil/Arizona Western College) had 25 kills and personal-best 22 digs, while sophomore setter Cat Juson (Long Beach, Calif./Bush) handed out a career-high 57 assists in Virginia Commonwealth University’s 3-1 win (30-23, 20-30, 34-32, 30-26) over Marquette Saturday at the Duke University Invitational at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

VCU improves to 2-0 for the first time since 2000, when it opened at 9-0. The win also avenges a 3-1 loss to the Golden Eagles early in the 2005 campaign in Milwaukee. Marquette is 0-2.

With the match tied at one game apiece, the Black and Gold were able to outlast Marquette to take the pivotal third game, 34-32.

The Rams trailed by as many as five in the game, at 22-17, before piecing together a 10-5 run. Francescatto ripped three kills during the burst and sophomore outside hitter Ana Luiza Bernardes de Borja (Florianopolis, Brazil/Colegio Geracao) chipped in two, to knot the score at 27-27.

After trading five points to make it 32-32, Francescatto closed the door with two consecutive kills off Juson assists.

“It was one of those games where whoever won was going to win the match pretty much every time because of how much emotion was involved.” said VCU coach James Finley.

The match marked Francescatto’s third career 20-20 performance. Additionally, senior middle blocker Melissa Peterson (Ganado, Ariz./ Arizona Western College) had 10 kills, 13 digs and two blocks, while sophomore libero Laryssa Goncalves (Curitiba, Brazil/Colegio Dom Bosco) provided 17 digs.

Jamie Mueller had 16 kills and 27 digs and Kim Todd added 19 kills for Marquette.

The victory sets up a winner-take-all scenario for the final match of the tournament between Duke, which won its first two contests against Gardner-Webb and Marquette, and VCU Saturday at 7 p.m.