NORTHFIELD, VT. – The 2011 edition of Johnson State women's volleyball opened their season with a 3-0 (25-8, 25-12, 25-12) defeat at Norwich University on Thursday night.  Also the opener for Norwich, the Cadets move to 1-0, 0-0 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) while Badgers to 0-1, 0-0 North Atlantic Conference (NAC).

The senior combination of outside hitters Ivana Batur (Zagreb, Croatia) and April Byllaardt (Stormville, N.Y.) helped get NU to the win with the duo each hammering nine kills and finishing well above .400 in attack percentage.  Byllaardt added a strong performance defensively at the net with two solo blocks and one block assist. She also joined Batur and freshman Corinne Baita (Rochester, N.H.) as the trio combined for nine service aces.

Johnson State saw a strong outing in the service game with Alex Benlock (North Haven, Conn./Lyman Hall), Molly Grover (Cumberland, Maine/Cheverus), and Kylie VanEtten (Montrose, Penn./Elk Lake) each notching three service aces.  VanEtten and Jessica Pafumi (Monson, Mass./Monson) both recorded four digs on the night.

Norwich roared out to big leads in the first two games. However, JSC opened the third game with a quick 6-3 lead and continued to hold the advantage at 9-7 until a five-point run for the Cadets turned the game around for good. 

Johnson State will next play at the Newbury College Tournament Friday and Saturday with matches slated against the host, Lasell College, Bard College, and the Sage Colleges during the two day event.  The Badgers will play in their home-opener on Sunday, September 11 at 11:00 am against Unity College.