ITHACA, N.Y. – The 18
th-ranked Ithaca College women's volleyball team took a big step in its quest to secure hosting rights to next month's Liberty League Tournament on Wednesday evening. In their awaited return to Ben Light Gymnasium following a four-match road swing, the Bombers squared off against an RIT squad that was red-hot, riding a 15-match winning streak and carrying an unbeaten 4-0 record into Wednesday night's crucial match. Although not sharp from the outset, Ithaca righted the ship midway through the second set and never looked back in a four-set triumph over the Tigers (22-25, 25-19, 25-20, 25-21). The victory not only kept the Bombers ahead of the pack as the Liberty League's last remaining unbeaten, but also secured IC's berth as at minimum one of the league's Top-3 seeds in next month's tournament.
As expected, the match lived up to the billing with two of the most talented program's in the league going head-to-head in a thriller. RIT struck the first blow in the match, as Ithaca looked out of sorts through the first set-and-a-half; however, once IC found its rhythm there was no looking back. The Bombers racked up 47 kills over the final three sets, tallying 15 on .429 team hitting in the turnaround second game, and 16-each over the final two frames to score the comeback win. The triumph extends IC's winning streak to eight consecutive matches.
"The first set-plus of tonight's match we really came out kind of flat," head coach
Johan Dulfer began. "I think we had a little paralysis by analysis. We knew a lot about RIT heading into tonight. We had a short, but specific game plan to attack them, but for one reason or another it just was not working, so we decided to scrap it and just try to attack with purpose like we always want to do. Once we got things going, I was extremely proud of our team's resiliency and ability to score a big win tonight."
The first set was a culmination of several things, but notably RIT came out aggressive and confident, riding the belief and tenacious play that has buoyed the team to 15 straight wins heading into tonight. The Tigers were sharp from the outset, amassing 11 kills and just three errors on .267 team hitting to pull out the first set. Things looked even more precarious for IC once the second frame got underway, as the Tigers built up an early 10-4 advantage, before Ithaca finally began to find its game.
"You have to give a ton of credit to RIT, they are a phenomenal volleyball team," Dulfer continued. "They are athletic, they are aggressive and they are extremely well coached. Obviously, we saw what they are capable tonight and they gave us everything we could handle. I think once we began to find our game and push back on top that put them in a position they haven't been in a lot this season, having to come from behind. They are a young team and are only going to get better, so it feels really good to get this victory under our belts."
The switch flipped for the Bombers during that second frame, as IC turned to a pair of seniors to change up the momentum. Making a switch in the middle, Dulfer inserted senior middle hitter
Ruby Dyson, a move that paid immediate dividends in getting some tips and blocks to slow down RIT's churning attack. It was also the serving of senior defensive specialist
Hailey Adler that helped Ithaca claw back into it. With the West Chester, Pa., native on serve, the Bombers rattled off six consecutive points to pull level. Adler notched a service ace during the run, while junior outside hitter
Taylor McCarthy registered a pair of kills. IC also received kills from sophomores
Sarah Jennison and
Reagan Stone, as well as junior setter
Caitlyn Floyd. Each tallied one apiece during the scoring spurt.
Although RIT again would widen the gap to four points at 16-12, IC reeled the Tigers back in with another lengthy scoring spurt behind the strong serving of Stone and Adler. The Bombers capped the set with a 10-1 scoring run. The first part of the run was a 5-0 spurt that included an ace from Stone, as well as two kills from senior middle
Katie Evans and one kill from Floyd. The second 5-0 run was powered by a solo block from Floyd and a pair of Adler service aces to see out the set.
Another scoring run midway through the third set proved to be the difference. Trailing 11-10, the Bombers put together a 7-2 surge that had two kills from Stone, as well as a huge combo block between the sophomore and Dyson. Evans and Jennison also added kills during the latter half of the run, which opened up a 17-13 advantage for Ithaca. McCarthy was a beast down the back half of the set, registering four of her season-high 13 kills over the final eight IC points. Evans added a pair of kills, while Stone sealed the set with a thunderous kill to the back left corner, as IC took its first lead in the tilt with a 25-20 win in the third.
Clearly in the groove now, Ithaca led almost wire-to-wire in the decisive fourth set. Dyson delivered some significant contributions with a pair of kills, as well as another huge combo block with Stone. The sophomore talent chipped in six more kills of her own in the final frame, while Evans and Jennison provided more prolific attack, registering two and three kills in the fourth set, respectively.
"This dynamic that this team has is so unique because of how tight-knit everyone is," Dulfer explained. "Everyone rallies around each other. Nobody feels sorry for themselves because a teammate is always ready to pick another up and provide support. You have to really trust each other to be able to turn things around as fast as we were able to tonight. I thought Ruby coming in tonight and providing that spark for us was huge. She is the epitome of a teamwork and what it means to be a part of our team and I'm just really happy she had that shining moment tonight and delivered in a big way."
Leading the way for Ithaca offensively was once-again Stone. The sophomore eclipsed double-digit kills for the eighth straight match, posting a match-high 18 on .200 hitting. She just narrowly missed another double-double, stuffing the stat sheet with nine digs, two block assists, and three service aces.
Opposite Stone, McCarthy had her best match of the season. She delivered a season-high 13 kills on scintillating .344 hitting. Jennison also had a solid outing, posting six kills on .250 hitting success. McCarthy added one dig, while Jennison finished with three. First-year
Jaelyn Hershberger chipped in one kill and one dig on the outside.
In the middle, Evans had another monster effort, tallying 15 kills on .458 hitting. She also added four digs and a rare assist. The senior has now posted hitting success of .400-or-better in six consecutive matches.
Dyson also came up aces in her most significant action of the year. She posted three kills on six swings, posting a team-best .500 hitting success rate. She added one solo block and two block assists to lead the Bombers defense at net.
Floyd once again was all over the court in a masterful performance. She packed the stat sheet with 49 assists, five digs, five kills, and two solo blocks. It was the eighth time in 18 matches that she has eclipsed the 40-assist mark this season.
The backline was led by senior libero
Tara Stilwell who turned in another dynamic performance. She finished the match with 19 digs, moving into ninth-place on the program's all-time list with 1,474 during her IC career. She also registered three assists and two service aces. First-year defensive specialist
Jordyn Lyn Hayashi notched seven digs and one service ace, while Adler posted three digs, three aces, and an assist. Sophomore
Delaney Runyon collected two digs on the night.
Ithaca returns to action this weekend with a trio of non-league contests at the Stevens Ducks Fall Classic in Hoboken, N.J. The Bombers open play on Friday, October 12, when they face Stockton in an 8:00 p.m. clash. Ithaca returns to action the following day with a doubleheader against Scranton at 11:00 a.m. and Arcadia at 1:00 p.m.
