ITHACA, N.Y. – The No. 23 nationally ranked Ithaca College volleyball team took on the Skidmore Thoroughbreds for their second game of the weekend. However, the gym was a little more crowded for a special occasion. This game highlighted Ithaca's three standout seniors (Jamie Koopman, Alexandra Montgomery, and Julia Costa) on their "Senior Day."
VS. SKIDMORE (25-12, 25-8, 22-25, 25-14)
The first set started off strong for the Bombers, with kills from Alexandra Montgomery, Faith Sabatier, and Gabriela Gonzalez-Abreu that made the score 4-2. A service ace by Skidmore advanced the score to 10-5, still in favor of the Bombers. A Jamie Koopman kill gave the Bombers an even larger lead, which led to a Skidmore timeout (14-6). A service ace by Ellie Benedict and a Faith Sabatier kill advanced the score to 18-9. After this the Bombers took control, only allowing Skidmore 12 total points. The match ended on a block from Jamie Koopman (25-12).
The second set also started off with an early lead for the Ithaca, with nice kills from Gonzalez-Abreu and Faith Sabatier (7-2). Skidmore made a bit of a comeback to advance the score to 8-5, but after an Alexandra Montgomery kill, the Bombers took complete control. A Jamie Koopman kill advanced the score to 14-5, and multiple impressive plays by the Bombers made the score 22-8. Gabriela Gonzalez-Abreu ended the set with a kill (25-8).
The third set was more evenly matched up until a 10-10 tie. From there, Skidmore took control with solid plays, but also benefited from errors from the Bombers. They kept a steady lead until the score reached 18-10. Ithaca began to make a comeback, but it wasn't enough. The Thoroughbreds ended up taking the set by a 25-22 score.
In the final set, the Bombers started off hot with kills from Faith Sabatier and Jamie Koopman that made the score 9-3. Skidmore took a timeout to reset, but the Bombers came out even hotter. Kills from Gonzalez-Abreu, Alex Montgomery, Faith Sabatier, Jamie Koopman, and Anaya Prince advanced the score to 18-11. From there, the Bombers only allowed the Thoroughbreds to three more points, the rest of the game. The set ended on a Faith Sabatier kill (25-14).
REACTION FROM HEAD COACH JOHAN DULFER
"It was wonderful to celebrate our senior class with a pair of good wins this weekend, remarked Dulfer." It's so good to see how we respond to being pushed. I thought Skidmore taught us about covering energy today and maintaining it throughout each set. We will be sure to take those lessons with us throughout the rest of the season."
With Saturday's victory Ithaca are now 14-3 overall and 3-0 within the Liberty League. The Bombers will return to action next weekend at the RIT Invitational where they will take on the hosts on Friday, October 13 at 4 p.m.
