Women's Volleyball | 10/21/2023 6:21:00 PM
UTICA, NY – The Alfred University women's volleyball team picked up a five-set Empire 8 victory on the road at Utica University on Saturday afternoon. The Saxons (8-10, 4-3 Empire 8) dropped the first and third sets but won the second, fourth and fifth sets. The final score line for AU was 20-25, 25-22, 23-25, 25-17, 16-14 as they handed the Pioneers (13-10, 3-3 Empire 8) the Saturday loss.
"It was great to win a five-set match in such dramatic fashion! It shows how much grit and determination this team has," Head Coach
Mike Honeycutt said. "Especially after losing a five-setter last night and officially clinching a spot in the Empire 8 playoffs is so satisfying. It's been two years since Alfred was in the playoffs and we couldn't be more excited."
Three Saxon players had double-digit points as
Casey Grange (Ithaca, NY/Ithaca) led the way, tying for a match-high 18.5 points. She had a match-high 18 kills while adding one block assist.
Taylor Malone (Horseheads, NY/Horseheads) added 16.0 points from 15 kills and one ace. She also had the match-high in digs with 29.
Delaney Sims (Bogart, GA/George Walton Academy) was once again, an all-around threat for AU, totaling 12.0 points from eight kills (as a setter) and tying for a match-high four service aces. She also had a match-high 32 set assists while adding six digs.
Darian Ortiz (Santa Fe, NM/St. Michael's) added 21 digs, 10 assists and a kill while
Jamie Chun (Hilo, HI/Hilo) tacked on 18 digs, 8.0 points from six kills and two aces.
The Saxons were down, 20-19 in the second set before taking the lead by scoring five, unanswered points. Grange,
Cara Bratthauar (Chambersburg, PA/Chambersburg Area) and
Fiona McNeil (Fayetteville, NY/Jamesville-DeWitt) each had kills in the spree. The Pioneers score twice to bring it within two points, 24-22 before Grange closed out the set and tied the match, 1-1 after AU dropped the first set.
Alfred University, after falling down in the match, 2-1 with the third set loss, began the fourth set with intensity, holding an 8-2 lead. Their efforts kept them in a comfortable lead with, at one point, an 11-point lead, 21-10. Utica fought back to a 24-17 deficit before, once again, Grange closed out the set with the 25
th point coming from a kill.
AU started the finalizer set with a 6-1 lead after scoring all six points in a row. During that spree, Grange had five kills. Utica took the lead with seven points in a row for an 8-6 lead. Both teams exchanged points until a kill from Utica tied the final set, 14-14. McNeil got a kill for the 15
th point before Chun closed out the set and the match with an ace.
The Saxons will next close out their Empire 8 schedule with a Wednesday trip to Elmira College for a 6:00pm start on October 25.
ABOUT THE EMPIRE 8 CONFERENCE
The members of the Empire 8 Conference are committed first and foremost to the pursuit of academic excellence and the league is regarded as an outstanding NCAA Division III conference. The membership has distinguished itself among its peer group for its quality institutions, spirited and sportsmanlike competition, outstanding services and highly ethical policies and practices. Its commitment to serve the educational needs of its student-athletes is the hallmark of the E8. For more on the Empire 8 visit
www.empire8.com.
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