ITHACA, N.Y. - The No. 21 ranked Ithaca College volleyball team took on the Tigers from RIT in Ben Light Gymnasium on Friday evening. The Bombers struggled a bit before settling into the first set as they ended up sweeping the Tigers in three winning 28-26, 25-12, 25-21. Ithaca moves to 18-5 overall and remain undefeated (7-0) in Liberty League conference play.
RIT started off the first set strong with a 7-2 lead, with a few solid kills from Cat Vento. A service ace from libero
Ellie Benedict brought the Bombers back within one (7-8). Two service aces from setter
Maddie Cox gave the Bombers their first lead of the game 11-9. Two back-to-back kills for RIT tied the score at 12 points apiece.
Naomi Clauhs gave the Bombers a momentum boost with two back-to-back kills, putting them up one point over the Tigers. It was neck and neck throughout the entire set, but ultimately the Bombers came out on top 28-26, clinching the first set and carrying momentum into the second. They battled back from the visitors earning the first set point and clinched the set with a big time kill from
Josie Hampton that was assisted by Cox.
The second set started in favor of the Bombers leading 3-1. They quickly built a lead over the Tigers 7-3, causing them to take a timeout following an attacking error. Ithaca produced kills from
Jayden Wiese and
Gabriela Gonzalez-Abreu that furthered the lead to 15-8. From this point in the set the momentum was completly in favor of the Bombers. They led 20-9 at one point and did not stop from there. Kills from
Anaya Prince furthered the lead and a service ace from Gonzalez-Abreu allowed the Bombers to secure the second set 25-12.
The Tigers led early in the final set 5-3, but that didn't last for long. A service ace from
Ellie Benedict gave the Bombers their first lead of the set. A series of impressive digs from
Julia Costa kept the Bombers alive on the defensive end, while
Gabriela Gonzalez-Abreu,
Anaya Prince, and
Jayden Wiese scored on the offensive attack. The Tigers had a burst of momentum in the middle of the set, where they trailed by just three points. However, in typical Bomber fashion, that momentum was quickly shut down as they were explosive at the net. The Bombers clinched the third set 25-21 with
Maddie Cox assisting on a successful swing from Gonzalez-Abreu.
The Bombers will look to remain unbeaten in the Liberty League regular season for the third-straight season tomorrow on Saturday, November 2. Ithaca will host Bard College for a 2 p.m. matchup.
