Syracuse University
4-0
Niagara University
3-1
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Syracuse | 26 | 25 | 27 | 28 | 15 | 3 |
| Niagara | 24 | 19 | 29 | 30 | 10 | 2 |
Orange Upends Purple Eagles, 3-2
9/1/2009 9:16:42 PM | Volleyball
A hard-fought effort propelled Syracuse (4-0) to a 3-2 victory against Niagara (3-1) on Tuesday night at the Gallagher Center. The Orange's fourth-straight win marks the best start to the season since the team opened the 2004 campaign with a 9-0 record.
“We were not playing our game,” assistant coach Carol LaMarche said. “We were trying some different lineups but we should have played better. Niagara played awesome defense, they were hustling for every ball and we weren't matching that effort, it wasn't how we wanted to play.”
Senior middle blocker Sarah Morton led the Orange offensively with 19 kills while junior Hayley Todd was on the mark adding a career-high 13 kills with a .385 attack percentage. Sophomore Noemie Lefebvre had 10 kills and senior Annabelle Pellerin had nine while Erin Little made her season debut adding five kills.
Setters Laura Homann and Hallie Morse split time feeding the Syracuse attack. Homann, the reigning BIG EAST Freshman of the Week, had a team-high 35 assists and four kills while Morse dished out 18 assists.
Lefebvre set the tone for the back row, collecting 17 digs while senior libero Shanetha McLaurin had 13 and freshman Kayla-Al Kaluau added 12.
The Orange was most dominant defensively at the net, besting the Purple Eagles on the block, 18-2. Todd led the way with 10 total blocks while Morton contributed six total stops. Freshman Samantha Hinz recorded three block assists in her collegiate debut while Little and Pellerin also had three block assists each.
The two teams played closely in the first set, trading points before the Orange scored four in a row courtesy of kills by Morton and Little and back-to-back Niagara attack errors to pull ahead 12-10. SU was able to maintain its slight lead until the Purple Eagles put up six-straight to gain a 20-17 advantage. With a late-game 23-20 lead, Niagara looked poised to take the first set, but the Orange battled back with a 6-1 run that included kills by Morton, Pellerin and a pair from Little to take the set, 26-24.
Game two followed in similar fashion with back-and-forth play through the opening third of the set. Tied at 10, Syracuse outscored the hosts 15-9 through the final stretch aided by kills from Lefebvre, Morton, junior Sarah Hayes and a pair by Pellerin, to take the second set, 25-19.
The battle heated up late in the third set with the two teams deadlocked 23-23 before trading points to tie 27-27. The Purple Eagles were able hold off the Orange, scoring the final two points to take game three, 29-27.
Syracuse suffered a game four setback in the same manner, tying with Niagara on 13 different occasions throughout the set. Tied at 18 the Purple Eagles were able to put together back-to-back kills to take the fourth set, 30-28, and tie the match, 2-2.
The Orange opened the fifth set with a 10-3 run, shutting down the Purple Eagles at the net with four total blocks. Solid net play, both offensively and defensively, helped Syracuse maintain its early lead to take the deciding set, 15-10 and the match, 3-2.
Syracuse travels to Ohio to take part in the Cleveland State Tournament. The Orange will face Michigan State on Friday, September 4 at 1 p.m. before taking on tournament hosts Cleveland State on Saturday, September 5 at 11 a.m.
