Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 SPRINGFIELD, Ohio – The No. 8 Ithaca College women's volleyball team returned to the court for the final day of the Wittenberg Fall Classic on Saturday. Looking to bounce back following a pair of defeats during the first day of action, Ithaca unfortunately continued to have the ball bounce the other way during the second day of the event. The Bombers began day two with a disappointing five-set loss to Mary Washington and the struggles continued in a three-set sweep against No. 17 Hope. Following the 0-4 weekend in Ohio, Ithaca's record sits at 5-5 heading into Liberty League action this coming weekend.
 
"We learned a valuable lesson today and this weekend about having accountability," head coach Johan Dulfer said following the two matches. "We cannot expect to perform at a high level if we do not do all the little things that are required every day. I thought we fought hard in the Mary Washington and Wittenberg matches this weekend, perhaps deserved a better outcome than we had. As for the Hope and Heidelberg matches, we were just simply outplayed in many of the key areas of the match. The differences between winning and losing at this level are razor thin. While this weekend did not fall our way, we now have a renewed sense of commitment to making the changes we know are required of us to continue to grow and improve."
 
No. 8 Ithaca 2 – Mary Washington 3 (18-25, 25-21, 26-24, 22-25, 6-15)
The Bombers retook the court looking to get the sour taste out of their mouth after a challenging opening day at the Wittenberg Fall Classic. Unfortunately, Mary Washington had other ideas in storming back from down a set to deal IC its third consecutive loss on the weekend in five compelling sets.
 
For the second straight day, Ithaca struggled out of the gates, dropping the opening set to the Eagles by a significant margin. However, Ithaca posted victories in the next two sets behind some gutsy hitting and defensive work. Sadly the Bombers were not able to see out the victory despite holding an early lead in the fourth set. Mary Washington came storming back midway through the game and never looked back, extending the match to a decisive fifth frame with the 25-22 win.
 
The Bombers struggled to regain moment during the decisive fifth set and Mary Washington capitalized in racing out to an early 8-1 lead. Although Ithaca would push back with 4-1 run to close the deficit slightly, the damage was done. Mary Washington posted another 4-0 run to close out the match and deal Ithaca its first defeat when leading by a set this season.
 
Sophomore outside hitter Reagan Stone continued to pace IC's attack. She led all players with 15 kills, while she picked up her second double-double of the weekend with 14 digs. Defensively, the sophomore also continued to step up at the net with one solo block and three block assists. Freshman Alison Lipton added seven kills, four digs, and three block assists. Junior Taylor McCarthy added five kills, one dig, and one block assist.
 
In the middle, senior Katie Evans turned in another monster effort. She posted 12 kills in attack and picked up seven more points on blocks with three solos and eight block assists. Sophomore Katie Basey turned in a five-kill and four block assist performance, while freshman Monet Peoples added two kills.
 
Junior setter Caitlyn Floyd went over 40 assists for the first time on the weekend. She amassed 41 helpers, while she added on solo block, five block assists, eight digs, one service ace, and one kill.
 
Behind the block, senior libero Tara Stilwell went over 20-digs for the second time this season. She marked 21 digs, while also adding one service ace and one kill. Freshman Jordyn Lyn Hayashi had a career-best performance with 17 digs, while senior Hailey Adler chipped in two service aces and six digs.
 
No. 8 Ithaca 0 – No. 17 Hope 3 (17-25, 14-25, 20-25)
Ithaca really struggled to get anything going in their favor during the second match of the day and final match of the weekend against one of the hottest teams in the nation in No. 17 Hope College. The Flying Dutch kept an IC squad that was likely physically and mentally fatigued out of rhythm throughout much of the match in the sweep. The loss was the second time this weekend that the Bombers fell in straight sets.
 
Stone paced IC's attack with nine kills and a pair of digs. Lipton turned in a four-kill and two-dig performance, while McCarthy and freshman Jaelyn Hershberger posted two kills and one kill, respectively. Sophomore Sarah Jennison also saw action and performed well with a pair of kills on .250 hitting success.
 
On the inside, Evans tallied six kills offensively, while she added one solo block and one block assist on the defensive side.
 
Floyd posted 18 assists, two kills and two digs, while sophomore Delaney Runyon added one kills, three assists, and three digs.
 
The passing was once again led by Stilwell. The senior posted 12 digs and one kill. Adler notched five digs, while Hayashi finished with six digs. Freshman Laura Severance added a pair of assists and three digs.
 
Looking Ahead
Ithaca will look to get back in the win column when it kicks off Liberty League play at St. Lawrence on Friday, September 21. Start time for the match is 5:00 p.m.