Canton, N.Y.– The Ithaca College volleyball team completed its fourth consecutive sweep in straight sets with a victory over Clarkson University on Saturday. With the win, the Bombers finish the Liberty League undefeated in first place with an 8–0 record and will host the semifinals and finals of the Liberty League tournament.
The Bombers got down to an early 7-4 deficit in the first set before going on a four-point run to take an 8-7 lead. Both teams went back-and-forth until the game was tied at 14-14. The Bombers went on a dominating 10-2 stretch to take a 24-16 lead. Kills from
Alexandra Montgomery and
Jennifer Pitts sparked the big run. A big kill by
Leila Chipepo closed out the set for the Bombers.
Chipepo opened the second set with another kill, igniting a six-point run to begin the set. Clarkson chipped away at the big lead until a four-point run put them ahead 16-15. Two points later, the Bombers started a five-point run to takes its lead back, 21-17. The Bombers got kills from Montgomery, Pitts and Chipepo to take the second set.
Clarkson opened the third set with a five-point run before the Bombers responded with a run of its own to tie the set at 5-5. Clarkson edged Ithaca over the next 15 points, taking a 14-11 lead. The Bombers battled back, eventually tying the game at 19-19. Clarkson earned two consecutive points before the Bombers went on a six-point run to win the set 25-21.
Aleka Darko was tied for the most kills in the match with nine. Defensively,
Julia Costa had 20 digs and three aces on the serve. Chipepo and Pitts each finished with four block assists.
REACTION FROM HEAD COACH JOHAN DULFER
"Playing at Clarkson is a very special competitive environment, and it takes some strong nerves to deal with that. I thought it was very telling for how this season has gone that when the score was tight, or anytime we got to 20 points, we played our best. We (the coaches, red) saw it all weekend - this team is so great together and so comfortable competing, there is a sense of trust that I've seldom seen on teams. I thought Clarkson had a good game plan, but we were just too determined today. I'm very proud of how we played and so thrilled we get to compete in front of our own fans next weekend."
The Bombers closed out an incredible regular season, finishing with a 22–4. The Bombers will host its first Liberty League semifinal on Friday, Nov. 4 at either 4 p.m. or 6:30 p.m. The Championship match will also be played in Ben Light Gymnasium at 2 p.m.
