ITHACA, N.Y. – The Ithaca College women's volleyball team continued its first Liberty League weekend on Saturday afternoon when Skidmore traveled to Ben Light Gymnasium. IC looked extremely sharp in its second match in less than 24-hours, taking control early and never looking back in a dominant three-set sweep of the Thoroughbreds (25-10, 25-22, 25-14). The win improves Ithaca's mark to 10-5 on the year and 2-0 in Liberty League action heading into tonight's non-league clash against NYU.
 
Unlike last night when IC needed to shrug off some early jitters, the Bombers looked as sharp as they have been all year right from the outset in this afternoon's match. Ithaca racked up 51 kills in three-sets of action, racking up 17 kills in all three sets, while converting at a scintillating .351 hitting mark for the entire match. The attacking was not the only thing on-point, as the Bombers really got strong work from the service line and delivered a great complementary effort from its defense at the net and behind the block in a resounding all-around win.
 
"We are very happy with the performance we were able to put together today," head coach Johan Dulfer said. "It is so important to get off to a strong start to the Liberty League schedule and I thought we came out today really focused and motivated against a dangerous team in Skidmore that was coming off a big win last night. We came out with great energy and kept that level of play consistent throughout the match."
 
Setting the tone for the match was junior right-side Reagan Stone. The Bombers went to her early-and-often on Saturday and the third-year talent responded with a big bounce-back performance after being held relatively in check by Union last night. She finished today's opener with a match-high 16 kills on an absolutely scorching .682 hitting percentage. Stone added two solo blocks, one block assist and five digs in an excellent two-way effort.
 
On the opposite pin, junior outside hitter Sarah Jennison continued to put up career performances. She finished with a season-best 15 kills on .344 hitting success, while also adding five digs. First-year Camryn O'Leary was back in the rotation for the Bombers on Saturday and had another strong outing with seven kills on .261 hitting, while also chipping in three digs.
 
In the middle, first-year Jennifer Pitts amassed six kills, but did her best work on defense. She marked a career-best six blocks, finishing with two solos and four block assists, while she also delivered two digs and a rare assist. Sophomore Monet Peoples marked one kill, one solo block, and one block assist.
 
Senior Caitlyn Floyd had the attack humming throughout the day with another fabulous outing in distribution. She finished with 39 assists, while she marked a season-high six kills on .667 hitting success. Defensively, she posted six digs and four block assists.
 
The IC backline also did well to limit Skidmore from having any easy balls to the floor. Sophomore Jordyn Lyn Hayashi led the group with a 15-dig and five-assist outing. Sophomore Laura Severance continued to provide some stellar work off the bench, hitting double-digits again with 10 digs as well as two assists. First-years Grace Isaksen and Hannah Hughes each added two service aces apiece, the former finishing with five kills and the latter marking two.
 
The opening set began with a bang, as IC went to Stone early en route to an 8-1 lead. The junior marked four kills and a solo block, while Jennison added one kill during the stretch.
 
Although Skidmore would claw back into things, closing the deficit to 10-8, the Bombers responded with a  dominant 11-1 run, primarily with Hughes working the service line. O'Leary, Jennison, Floyd and Pitts all registered kills during the stretch, while Pitts and Floyd combined on back-to-back block assists. IC closed out the first-set win with four straight points with the final two coming via kills from Floyd.
 
The second set was the closest contested of the three. Both sides answered one- and two-point swings through the early part of the set. IC was the first team to open up some separation with a 5-1 surge to take an 18-13 lead just over the midway point in the game. Stone notched two kills during the stretch, while Pitts and O'Leary also added one scoring swing apiece. However, Skidmore again would battle back into it, eventually closing the margin to a single point at 22-21.
 
It was Ithaca that scored the crucial points to take a stranglehold on the match in the latter stages of the set. It was the third-year tandem outside that clinched things for Bombers down the stretch, as Jennison and Stone marked big kills to see out the 25-22 set win.
 
IC utilized the momentum from the finish to the second to again jump on top of the Thoroughbreds early in the third. Ithaca marked three 3-0 runs during the opening portions of the set, before a 4-0 scoring stretch really broke things open at 17-10. Kills from Jennison and Stone, as well as a service ace from Isaksen fueled that final run.
 
A subsequent 5-0 scoring stretch effectively sealed the match. Pitts and Jennison marked kills during the surge, while Hughes marked both of her service aces during that stretch as well. Jennison's 15^th kill of the day clinched the match for the Bombers at 25-14.
 
Ithaca is back in action at 6:00 p.m. against NYU.