PITTSBURGH, Pa. – The No. 20-ranked Ithaca College volleyball team delivered a signature performance on Friday afternoon, taking down No. 4 Johns Hopkins University in a thrilling four-set match as part of the competitive Carnegie Mellon Invitational. After dropping a tightly contested opening set, the Bombers bounced back with three straight set wins to avenge last season's NCAA Tournament loss to the Blue Jays. The victory marked the first loss of the season for Johns Hopkins, while Ithaca improved to 4–2 overall.
 
The opening set of Friday's match between Ithaca College and No. 4 ranked Johns Hopkins was tightly contested, with both teams trading points early and locking the score at 7–7. The Bombers responded with a strong stretch, trimming the Blue Jays' lead to 12–11 after Gabriela Gonzalez-Abreu delivered a kill off a set from Wesley Slavin.
 
Ithaca continued to apply pressure, tying the set at 13–13 thanks to a big-time block from Naomi Clauhs and Ella Graper. Johns Hopkins answered with a four-point run to take a 17–13 lead, prompting head coach Tara Stilwell to call her first timeout of the afternoon.
 
The Bombers halted the momentum when Clauhs connected on a kill to make it 18-14. Graduate libero Ellie Benedict then capitalized on a free ball to earn a point, followed by a kill from Addison Leadbetter and an ace from Benedict to complete a 4-0 run, pulling Ithaca within one at 20-19. Despite the late surge, Johns Hopkins held on to take the opening set 25-22 following another Bombers timeout.
 
Ithaca came out strong to start the second set, taking an early 4-3 lead after Gabriela Gonzalez-Abreu connected on another kill. Wesley Slavin and Ella Graper teamed up for a block to edge the Bombers ahead again at 6-5. The teams continued to trade points before Johns Hopkins built a bit of momentum, stringing together a run to go up 12-9.
 
The Blue Jays' offensive push was halted when Brianna Owen delivered back-to-back kills at the net, keeping Ithaca within striking distance. The Bombers continued to battle and eventually tied the set at 15-15. They grabbed the lead moments later when Slavin set up Naomi Clauhs for a kill, making it 16-15 in favor of Ithaca. Clauhs continued to swing well including a cross-court effort as Ithaca stretched it out to 20-18.
 
Brianna Owen continued her strong performance in the second set, connecting on another kill to give Ithaca a 22-20 lead. Johns Hopkins responded with back-to-back timeouts in an effort to slow the Bombers' momentum, but Gabriela Gonzalez-Abreu came through once again, delivering a kill at the net to bring Ithaca to set point at 24-21. The junior outside hitter sealed the deal moments later, hammering home the final point to secure a 25-23 win and tie the match at 1-1.
 
The second-set win marked just the second set loss of the season for Johns Hopkins, and Ithaca carried that momentum into the third. The Bombers came out aggressive, forcing the Blue Jays out of system offensively and jumping out to a quick 3-0 lead.
 
Naomi Clauhs and Addison Leadbetter delivered powerful swings to extend the lead to 9-5. Wesley Slavin made a statement at the net with a solo block, followed by a combined block from Clauhs and Ella Graper. Graper kept the defensive pressure high with a solo block of her own, pushing the Bombers' lead to 14-9 and forcing a Johns Hopkins timeout.
 
Ithaca extended its lead to 17-12 and was the first to reach the 20-point mark, but Johns Hopkins wasn't done yet. The Blue Jays mounted a comeback, cutting the deficit to 20-18. Simone Adam capped off a 3-0 run that brought Johns Hopkins within one at 22-21, putting pressure on the Bombers down the stretch. An ace from Johns Hopkins tied the set at 23-23, but Naomi Clauhs responded with a clutch kill to even things again at 24-24. Ithaca regained the edge at 26-25 following an attacking error by the Blue Jays, and another miscue sealed the set for the Bombers, who took it 27-25 to grab a 2-1 lead in the match.
 
Gabriela Gonzalez-Abreu continued her standout performance with another big-time kill that stretched Ithaca's lead to 10-6, her 16^th of the day. Johns Hopkins responded with a brief run, but the Bombers countered with a thunderous swing from first year Addison Leadbetter and an ace from Gonzalez-Abreu, pushing the lead to 14-10 and keeping the momentum firmly in Ithaca's favor. Ithaca continued to press in the fourth set, stretching its lead to 17-11, the largest margin held by either team throughout the match. The Bombers' aggressive play and consistent execution down the stretch including Ellie Benedict's second service ace saw Ithaca go up 22-19. The set turned into a thriller when the Blue Jays tied it up after Ithaca had a set point, but Ithaca would capitalize this time closing it out with a Naomi Clauhs kill, which ended it at 26-24.

The Bombers finished with a .230 hitting percentage and totaled 59 kills in the match, outpacing the Blue Jays offensively. Gabriela Gonzalez-Abreu led all players with a match-high 17 kills, while graduate libero Ellie Benedict anchored the defense with a season-best 35 digs. Setter Wesley Slavin turned in a standout performance, recording a season-high 46 assists to go along with 18 digs for a double-double.
 
Next up, will first take on Carnegie Mellon at 11 a.m. who has been receiving votes in the AVCA Top-25 Coaches Poll followed by squaring off against No. 7 Massachusetts Institute of Technology at 3 p.m.