ITHACA, N.Y. – The No. 7 Ithaca College women's volleyball team was back on the court at Ben Light Gymnasium on Saturday afternoon when it faced a scrappy and talented Susquehanna outfit set out to spoil the finale of what has been an extremely positive opening home stand. Although the River Hawks gave Ithaca some trouble throughout the match, IC grinded out an impressive four-set (25-15, 26-24, 16-25, 25-22) victory over another talented foe to run its record to 5-1 through the first two weekends. The victory sends Ithaca off to its first road trip of 2018 on a strong note.
 
"I'm really impressed with how our team responded to a difficult challenge this afternoon," head coach Johan Dulfer said post-match. "Susquehanna did a really good job of dictating how the match was going to be played and making us play out of our comfort zone. They executed their game plan and had us frazzled at times. However, it was great to see our response and coming up with some big swings at the end to clinch another victory."
 
The match was in many ways a story of two separate days. In the opening set the Bombers could do no wrong. Ithaca racked up 12 kills on .320 hitting success, while the team combined for six blocks in a runaway 25-15 victory. However, the middle frames certainly favored the River Hawks, as the visitors forced IC into 18 errors and sub-par hitting compared to yesterday's masterful performances against SUNY Geneseo and Wesleyan (Conn.). Despite the struggles, Ithaca took a two-sets-to-one lead into the fourth frame. When push came to shove the Bombers strength prevailed. Ithaca amassed a match-high 17 kills on .268 hitting in the final game to clinch the victory.
 
Once again it was sophomore Reagan Stone that paced IC from the pins. She racked up 19 kills on 47 swings (.277 hitting), while adding five digs and a season-high five block assists. Behind Stone, first-year Alison Lipton continued to provide the Bombers reliable contributions. She posted eight kills on .185 hitting success, while she notched her first career double-double with 14 digs.
 
Adding some production outside was the tandem of junior Taylor McCarthy and sophomore Sarah Jennison. McCarthy started the match and posted four kills on 17 attacks, while also adding a solo block and five digs through the first three sets. Jennison subbed in off the bench with IC trying to shake things up in the crucial fourth set. The play worked well, as Jennison marked two kills on five attacks (.200 hitting).
 
The inside attacking was led by senior middle Katie Evans. Although the Westerville, Ohio, native was held in check, she posted six kills and a dig. Freshman Monet Peoples had an impressive showing in her second straight start. She posted three kills on nine attacks (.222 hitting), while she was a veritable wall for portions of the match. She finished with a career-best seven block assists in the contest.
 
Junior setter Caitlyn Floyd posted another reliable strong outing from the setting position. She stuffed the stat sheet with 42 assists, five kills, two block assists, and nine digs. Sophomore Delaney Runyon added one assist.
 
The backline continued to be keyed by senior libero Tara Stilwell. She had her best performance of the season, marking a season-high 23 digs, while also adding one kill, one assist, and two more service aces. Senior Hailey Adler chipped in seven digs and picked up three kills on eight swings from the back. First-year Jordyn Lyn Hayashi posted six digs and one assist, while classmate Laura Severance posted one dig in two sets of action.
 
The first set was dominated by Stone and Peoples who gave Susquehanna fits on both sides. Offensively, Stone marked four kills and Peoples added one, while on the defensive end Stone finished with four block assists and Peoples tallied five combo blocks in the frame. Ithaca marked two 4-0 scoring runs and added a 5-0 stretch to easily pull away for the early lead in the match with a 25-15 triumph.
 
The second set is when Susquehanna began to impose their will on the match. After getting stymied by IC's block in the first frame, the River Hawks went to a strategy on more tips and out-of-system dumps. Coupled with strong serving, IC struggled to contend with the shift in strategy. Despite the struggles, IC managed to come up with the clutch plays down the stretch to take command of the match with a 26-24 set win.
 
Trailing 22-20, IC turned to Stone and the sophomore delivered in clutch fashion. She marked three kills, which combined with a Stilwell ace, turned into a 4-1 scoring run and a 24-23 advantage. Although Susquehanna extended the frame when Stone drove an off-balanced attack into the net, IC went on to score the next two points to score the 26-24 win.
 
Although Ithaca raced out to a 7-3 lead in the third set, the game turned into a forgettable one for IC. The River Hawks continued to give the Bombers fits with strong serving and defense at net, as well as behind the block. Four scoring runs of 3-0 or better helped the visitors extend the match with a comfortable 25-16 set win.
 
Looking to swing the tide back in its favor, Ithaca raced out to a commanding 8-0 advantage in the fourth set. Stone and Jennison each marked a pair of kills during the run with Lipton on serve, while the freshman added an ace during the pivotal stretch. Although the River Hawks slowly regained their footing and clawed back into the set, they had trouble slowing down the Bombers' relentless attack.
 
With the lead trimmed to just two points at 21-19, Lipton came up with back-to-back kills from the left pin. Although Susquehanna responded with a 3-0 run to again close the gap within a single point, it was IC's power hitters that prevailed in the clutch moment of the match. Lipton powered a pushed attack through a combo block to gain IC match point. Floyd delivered an excellent serve that forced an overpass, which Stone pounded down to the court for the clinching point.
 
"That was a big lesson for us in that fourth set of what to do when you are being pushed," Dulfer said. "Those two swings at the end were really big and I'm really proud of how cool and collected we stayed in executing how we wanted to play out those final points."
 
The victory sends the Bombers to their first road trip with a bunch of confidence. With today's win, IC extended its winning streak to five straight matches since dropping the opener to now-No. 1 Calvin.
 
"I expect all three of the teams we played this weekend to have excellent seasons," Dulfer explained. "I think all of our opponents gave us something to learn from and to work on this week. We talk about being on the train during the week and getting off the train on weekends when we play. This week will be about getting back on the train, working on finding solutions to the things that gave us trouble this weekend, and to move forward and grow as a team."
 
Ithaca returns to action next weekend when they travel to Springfield, Ohio, for the Wittenberg Tiger Invitational. IC will face Heidelberg and No. 3 Wittenberg during the opening day of competition on Friday, September 14. The Bombers return to the court the following day to play Mary Washington and No. 20 Hope College.
 
"It has been amazing the fan support that we have gotten these first two weekend," Dulfer concluded. "People I think are really buying in and seeing how fun it is to come and watch our team play. That said, I think our team is excited for this first road trip. The team bonding and the challenge that comes with playing on the road is such a great experience for our team and we are looking forward to this tough test next weekend."