SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – The Ithaca College volleyball team kicked off its final weekend of the regular season on Friday evening when it opened a two-day stretch at the Skidmore Invitational against SUNY New Paltz. Although the Bombers held stormed back from an opening set loss to take a 2-1 lead in the match, the Hawks battled back to take the final two sets and the match in five sets. The loss dropped Ithaca's record to 22-5 on the year, while IC is now 3-2 in matches that have gone the distance this season.
 
Same-day travel matches are always a challenge and Ithaca had trouble getting its offense in rhythm during the opening set. On the strength of New Paltz's excellent block, IC was held to just eight kills and a .087 hitting percentage in the first frame.
 
"We had a tough time with the serve-pass battle and I think it hurt our confidence early on," head coach Johan Dulfer said. "When you struggle to pass it really affects the whole match. We have been such a great passing team, but unfortunately tonight it was one of those off nights that every team has throughout the course of a long season."
 
The Hawks jumped out to an early lead with a 6-1 run to begin the set, while a subsequent 6-0 run made the score 12-4. While the Bombers climbed back within striking distance with an 8-4 run to make the score 16-12, another a 5-0 run by New Paltz put the set out of reach. Juniors, Joelle Goldstein and Caroline Gerulskis, both notched two kills in the frame, while sophomore, Amanda Cerruti, picked up a kill and two block assists.
 
IC rallied with its best set of the match in the second to even the match at 1-1. Ithaca chalked up 13 kills and a .370 hitting percentage, while also holding the Hawks to only six kills.
 
It was actually the Hawks that jumped out to an early lead in the game, but IC came roaring back with a 6-1 run thanks to a pair of kills from Goldstein and Gerulskis. The two sides traded points through the middle portion of the set, but with the Bombers leading 17-16, IC strung together a 7-0 scoring streak to pull away down the stretch. Cerruti closed out the set with a big kill down the middle.
 
Ithaca continued the momentum into the always crucial third set. The Bombers raced out to a 5-1 advantage and continued to build the advantage throughout the frame. IC snatched the lead in the match with a 5-1 run to close the third frame. Freshman, Caitlyn Floyd, and Goldstein both picked up kills, while Cerruti again clinched the set, this time with a solo block.
 
Looking to seal the match with a win in set four, it was errors that undid the Bombers and allowed New Paltz back into the match. Despite limiting the Hawks to just eight kills and .108 hitting in the frame, nine IC errors paved the way for a 25-22 New Paltz win to force a decisive fifth set.
 
"Our goal is to always get our kill number up in the mid-to-high teens, but the serving of New Paltz really made it hard to reach that goal," Dulfer said. "In the end, for a variety of factors, we were unable to get untracked."
 
The final set proved to be a rollercoaster, as both sides scored slim leads throughout the game. With IC leading 11-10, the Hawks rattled off four consecutive points to come within a single point of clinching the match at 14-11. The Bombers responded with four straight points of their own to set up their own match-point opportunity. Unfortunately, it was the Hawks that were able to pull out the clutch scores in extra-points, taking four of the final five rallies in the match to take the last game 18-16.
 
Goldstein continued her strong play of late with her 11^th double-double of the season. She posted 10 kills and 19 digs, while she added four service aces and two block assists. Freshman, Taylor McCarthy, had a strong game at the opposite pin, also amassing 10 kills on .231 hitting and chipping in four digs.
 
Gerulskis had an excellent two-way match, finishing with nine kills on a .250 hitting clip and posting four block assists. In the middle, Cerruti and sophomore, Katie Evans, each finished with eight kills apiece. Like Gerulskis, Evans added four block assists, while Cerruti marked two solo blocks and three block assists to pace the Bombers at net.
 
Junior, Kayla Gromen, and Floyd each finished with 21 assists in the match. Floyd scored a double-double 11 digs, while she also scored three kills. Gromen narrowly missed out on a double-double, finishing with nine digs. Sophomore libero, Tara Stilwell, led IC with 26 digs and also marked two service aces.
 
Junior, Marlee Wierda, added three service aces and five digs. Senior, Myan Idziur, posted a service ace and three digs.
 
"We've been incredibly resilient the entire year and I know we'll bounce back with a strong effort tomorrow," Dulfer concluded. "We talked about the kind of team we can be and that we want to be over the next few weeks and I think we will refocus and take steps towards becoming that team tomorrow."
 
The Bombers conclude their regular season tomorrow morning with matches against SUNY Potsdam and SUNY Geneseo at 10:00 a.m. and 12:00 p.m., respectively.