ITHACA, N.Y. – The No. 21 ranked Ithaca College volleyball team was firing on all cylinders on Saturday in its matchup with St. John Fisher. The Bombers were able to score a close first set win and really swung well in the two closing sets in an impressive 3-0 sweep over the Cardinals. The Bombers showcased their dominance with set scores of 25-23, 25-10, and 25-14, marking their third consecutive win of the season as they also went 3-0 on the weekend inside Ben Light Gymnasium as part of the annual Bomber Invitational.
From the opening serve, Ithaca displayed its strength and strategy, though the first set proved competitive as they narrowly edged out St. John Fisher with a 25-23 finish. The Bombers improved as the match went on, swinging .278 in the first set and got better in each set after. Ithaca opened the first set with a 9-6 lead, punctuated by a kill from Naomi Clauhs, assisted by Wesley Slavin. The Cardinals strung together a 5-0 run and led 11-9 as the teams traded points up to 20-20.
Fisher nearly had the Bombers on the ropes as they led 22-20 after back-to-back kills from Ana Gutman. Ithaca showed its grit and scored three-straight, including a Julia Costa service ace, and closed the set with an opponent attacking error and a Faith Sabatier kill.
The Bombers then asserted their control in the second set, delivering a decisive 25-10 performance. Ithaca played its game and built a 7-3 advantage that saw three successful swings from Gabriela Gonzalez-Abreu. Another big scoring run occurred in the middle of the set, starting with an Anaya Prince kill and capped off with another Sabatier effort, putting the team up 18-9. The Bombers scored the final five points, all with Peyton Miller at the service line, closing it out with a perfectly placed ace.
The final set saw Ithaca maintain its momentum, closing out the match with a 25-14 victory. The Bombers swung a match-high .414 and totaled 13 kills. The Cardinals and Ithaca traded points, with Fisher up 11-10 before Ithaca seized control with an 8-0 run that included an Ellie Benedict ace and a pair of kills from Gabriela Gonzalez-Abreu. They closed out the match in exciting fashion with back-to-back aces from Josie Hampton.
Ithaca's Gabriela Gonzalez-Abreu led the Bombers with a match-high 16 kills and contributed a block, driving the team's offensive efforts. Faith Sabatier added significant support with eight kills and two blocks, while Naomi Clauhs also tallied eight kills. Peyton Miller excelled in serving, recording three aces, with Ellie Benedict and Josie Hampton contributing two aces each. Hampton was a key defensive force with four blocks, supported by two blocks from Faith Sabatier and one from Gabriela Gonzalez-Abreu.
REACTION FROM HEAD COACH TARA STILWELL
"I'm once again so proud and impressed with my team for going out and defending our home floor in all three matches this weekend and really not letting up, especially when things weren't going our way," said Stilwell. "We focused on the things we can control, and our blocking was really strong. I'm excited to see how we react next weekend playing our first nationally ranked squad in Johns Hopkins University, and we'll surely be putting in the work this week at practice in preparation for the weekend."
The Bombers improved to 4-1 overall this weekend and will gear up for the JHU Greg "Gio" Giovanazzi Memorial Tournament, beginning with a matchup against No. 4 Johns Hopkins at 7 p.m. on Friday, followed by matches with Susquehanna (10 a.m.) and Marymount University (3 p.m.) on Saturday.
