Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 ITHACA, N.Y. – The Ithaca College volleyball team hosted Empire 8 conference matches Saturday and dropped a five-set match to Nazareth and fell in three sets to Stevens. In the 3-2 loss to Nazareth, match scores were 26-24, 16-25, 25-27, 25-23, 15-7. Against Stevens, the Ducks won 3-0 by scores of 25-22, 25-20, 25-14.
 
These were the final Empire 8 conference matches of the season for each of the three teams, and all three entered the day with 6-0 records. In another match played Saturday at Ben Light Gymnasium, Stevens defeated Nazareth 3-0. Stevens will be the top seed and host for the Empire 8 volleyball playoffs at 8-0, with Nazareth as second seed (7-1) and Ithaca as third seed with a 6-2 E8 mark. Houghton finished fourth with a 5-3 conference record. More tournament information is available from the Empire 8.
 
Ithaca honored senior Rylie Bean prior to the opening match against Nazareth.
 
NAZARETH 3, ITHACA 2
 
Nazareth pulled out the opening set 26-24 before Ithaca came back to win the second set 25-16 and then the third set by a 27-25 score. Nazareth closed by winning the fourth set 25-23 and the fifth set 15-7.
 
Rylie Bean and Joelle Goldstein shared the lead for Ithaca with 14 kills each. Goldstein hit .294 in the match. Kayla Gromen had 43 assists. Maggie Mutschler had nine digs. Ithaca served nine aces in the match, led by four from Bean.
 
STEVENS 3, ITHACA 0
 
In the match against Stevens, Goldstein totaled 10 kills and Bean had eight kills. Kayla Gromen had 21 assists and two service aces. Dylan Gawinski Stern added two aces. Maggie Mutschler had 11 digs and Myan Idziur had nine digs. Katie Hartman had one solo block and two block assists.