ITHACA, N.Y.– The Ithaca College volleyball team defeated Rochester Institute of Technology in three sets on Saturday in the second Liberty League semifinal. The Bombers battled and were surely tested in the first two sets by the Tigers before a dominant performance in the third set, which clinched its berth in the Liberty League Championship. Ithaca returns to the championship match for the first-time since the 2019 season where tomorrow's final will be a rematch between Clarkson and Ithaca, which the Golden Knights came out on top in five sets.
VS. RIT (26-24, 26-24, 25-13)
The Tigers got on the front foot in the first set, scoring the first two points. The Bombers claimed the lead with a three-point swing to make the score 3-2. The Tigers took its lead back, making the score 5-4 before going on a four-point run to take a 9-4 lead.
The Bombers came out of a timeout with a 4-1 run to bring the score within one point. Over the next 13 points, the Tigers continued to play well, increasing its lead to 18-14. Kills from
Aleka Darko and
Faith Sabatier jolted a four-point run to tie the set at 18 points apiece.
Both teams battled back-and-forth to 21-21. RIT earned two consecutive points before the Bombers responded with two straight points to tie it at 23-23. Down 24-23, a kill from
Alexandra Montgomery and an attack error gave the Bombers set point at 25-24. A great serve by
Peyton Miller forced an attacking error by the Tigers and the Bombers took the first set.
The Bombers took an early 4-2 lead in the second set, but the Tigers went on a four-point run to take a 6-4 lead. Down 10-8, the Bombers went on a three-point run to take an 11-10 lead. Over the next 15 points, the Tigers had the edge with a 19-17 lead.
The Bombers quickly battled back to even the score at 20-20. Kills from
Faith Sabatier and
Aleka Darko helped the Bombers get out to a 24-22 lead, but the Tigers earned two consecutive points to even the score at 24 points each. A kill from Montgomery and an attack error gave the Bombers a 26-24 win in the second set and a 2-0 lead.
The Bombers opened the third set with a three-point run highlighted by an ace from
Elli Gaskill and a kill from
Leila Chipepo. The Bombers took two of the next three points to get out to a 5-1 lead.
Ahead 6-3, a kill from Darko ignited a seven-point run to take a big 13-3 lead. The Tigers began to chip away at the lead, but the Bombers made big plays to prevent the Tigers starting a big run. The Bombers closed out the set, winning by a score of 25-13.
Aleka Darko led all student-athletes with 13 kills and
Faith Sabatier added 11 more.
Julia Costa was solid defensively, getting 11 digs.
Grace Isaksen had three aces for the Bombers, and Gaskill added two more. Miller had 37 assists for the Bombers.
REACTION FROM HEAD COACH JOHAN DULFER
"I thought RIT had a good game plan and played very well especially the first two sets. They are a team capable of rising above themselves and are very well coached. We didn't get the blocks the first two sets that we are used to getting and that changed the complexion of the match temporarily. I thought once are blocking at the net kicked in the third set, that made things significantly easier and I'm very proud of my team for pulling out the win tonight. It truly was a great environment to play in and we are so lucky we get to do this in front of our home fans."
The Bombers host Clarkson University in the Liberty League Championship tomorrow, November 5 with the match beginning at 2 p.m. in Ben Light Gymnasium.
