CORTLAND, N.Y. – The No. 16 ranked Ithaca College volleyball team traveled to nearby Cortland for a Friday tri-match against the homestanding Red Dragons and the Stevens Ducks. The Bombers were pushed to four sets against a tough Stevens squad (25-18, 22-25, 25-17, 25-17) and would also prevail over Cortland in four sets (25-13, 16-25, 25-21, 25-22).
NO. 16 ITHACA 3, STEVENS 1 (25-18, 22-25, 25-17, 25-17)
The opening set was tightly contested, with Ithaca edging ahead 6-4 thanks to two kills apiece from
Gabriela Gonzalez-Abreu and
Addison Leadbetter, both assisted by
Wesley Slavin. The Bombers then went on a 7-4 run, prompting a Ducks timeout with the score at 13-8.
Following the break, Ithaca maintained its momentum, extending the lead to 20-12 after another strong swing from Gonzalez-Abreu.
Naomi Clauhs and
Ella Graper added points for the Bombers, but a brief Stevens rally forced an Ithaca timeout at 23-18. The Bombers closed out the set 25-18, capitalizing on a final attacking error and a service error by Vivan Lisboa.
Neither team was able to gain more than a one-point edge in the early stages of the second set, with five lead changes occurring before Stevens pulled ahead 13-10. The Bombers responded with a four-point surge, highlighted by back-to-back kills from
Gabriela Gonzalez-Abreu and a service ace from
Brianna Owen, which forced a Stevens timeout. Neither team again was able to gain an edge as the teams traded points to another tie this time at 18 points apiece after a kill through the middle from Owen.
Stevens regained control late in the set, taking a 23-21 lead after an Ella Boland kill prompted a timeout from Ithaca head coach
Tara Stilwell. A lengthy rally was capped off by a powerful kill from
Addison Leadbetter, but Stevens responded with two-straight points to close out the set 25-22, evening the match at one set apiece.
After trading points to a 4-4 tie, the Bombers built a 10-5 lead following an ace from
Addison Leadbetter, back-to-back kills from
Naomi Clauhs, and a Ducks attacking error. Stevens responded by scoring three of the next four points out of its timeout, narrowing the gap to 11-8. Ithaca answered with
Karina Garcia serving up an ace, followed by big-time kills from
Gabriela Gonzalez-Abreu and Clauhs to extend the lead to 16-12. The run continued as
Wesley Slavin scored on a dump-over and Clauhs delivered another successful swing, forcing the final Stevens timeout of the set with IC up 20-15. The Bombers would take the set at 25-17 following an opponent attacking error and a Clauhs' 10
th kill of the afternoon.
Up 2-1, Ithaca opened the fourth set fighting back to grab a 7-5 lead after a pair of opponent errors, and an
Ella Graper kill through the middle of the net. The Bombers again forced the Ducks into a timeout, this time following three straight points including one from Clauhs. Out of the break,
Wesley Slavin served up an ace to put Ithaca ahead 11-7.
IC continued to roll through the middle of the set with
Naomi Clauhs scoring on two more kills, and
Addison Leadbetter adding another before serving up two straight aces to make it 20-13. The Ducks would show their grit clawing back, but the set was eventually won by the Bombers using another
Karina Garcia service ace and one final successful swing from
Gabriela Gonzalez-Abreu.
NO. 16 ITHACA 3, CORTLAND 1 (25-13, 16-25, 21-25, 25-22)
The Bombers extended their win streak to 12 matches and snapped SUNY Cortland's own 11-match run with a 3-1 victory over the Red Dragons on their home court.
Junior outside hitter
Naomi Clauhs led the Bombers with a match-high 19 kills, while sophomore
Brianna Owen and first year
Addison Leadbetter each 10 and eight more kills, apiece. Junior setter
Wesley Slavin paced the offense with 38 assists, and graduate libero
Ellie Benedict anchored the defense with 22 digs.
Gabriela Gonzalez-Abreu contributed a steady nine kills just missing out on the double-double, and junior outside hitter Kira Pirrera led Cortland with 28 digs and 21 kills.
Ithaca came out firing in the first set, jumping to a 5-1 lead behind three early kills from Clauhs. After a service error by Slavin gave Cortland its second point, Owen responded with three straight kills to push the lead to 8-2. Despite a few kills from Pirrera, Cortland struggled with errors, committing nine in the set and Ithaca cruised to a 25–13 win.
Cortland regrouped in the second set, taking the first two points and winning 11 of the first 17 before Ithaca called a timeout. Pirrera continued to lead the Red Dragons offensively, while Erica Arroyo added three points, including back-to-back service aces. Cortland extended its lead to 16-7 with consecutive kills from Pirrera. Clauhs kept Ithaca competitive with several kills, bringing her match total to nine, but the Bombers couldn't close the gap and dropped the set 25-16.
Errors again plagued Cortland at the start of the third set, with three attack errors and a Clauhs kill giving Ithaca a 4-0 lead. Cortland responded with a 5–2 run to narrow the gap, and the set remained tight. Pirrera was instrumental in keeping the Red Dragons close, tallying eight kills in the set, including a powerful back-row strike for their 13th point. Ithaca regained control on a Sarah Taggart service error and never looked back. Leadbetter delivered consecutive aces, and Owen, Leadbetter, and Clauhs each added two kills to secure a 25-21 win.
Looking to close out the match, Ithaca started the fourth set strong, taking a 4-1 lead with three more kills from Clauhs. Cortland trimmed the deficit to 10-9 after back-to-back aces from Melissa O'Connor, but Ithaca responded with a decisive run. Gonzalez-Abreu added a kill, sophomore
Renee McGowan notched her first kill with a diving effort in the back row, and Cortland committed consecutive attack errors, giving Ithaca a five-point cushion heading into a Red Dragons timeout.
The Bombers maintained their lead down the stretch. Gonzalez-Abreu added five kills in the set, and Clauhs sealed the match with a crosscourt kill to take the set 25-22.
Ithaca will look to keep its momentum going tomorrow at 2 p.m. when it hosts St. Lawrence at Ben Light Gymnasium for Senior Day.
