Volleyball Takes One Of Two In Tournament Finale

Saturday, August 26

10 AM

Syracuse University

Niagara

Photo by: Michael J. Okoniewski

Volleyball Takes One Of Two In Tournament Finale

8/26/2017 11:53:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2 'Cuse vs. Niagara Box Score PDF 'Cuse vs. Colgate Box Score PDF

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – The Syracuse women's volleyball team surged past Niagara (0-3) in three sets (25-16, 25-20, 25-22) Saturday morning at the Syracuse Tournament in the Women's Building. In the nightcap, the Orange (2-2) were defeated by Colgate (3-0) in straight sets (24-26, 26-28, 21-25).

Syracuse 3, Niagara 0
Amber Witherspoon had a match-high 11 kills to lead Syracuse to a 3-0 victory over Niagara. Jalissa Trotter contributed a match-leading 19 assists and Belle Sand led all competitors with 17 digs.

The Orange came out strong in the first set and built up an 8-2 lead, but the Purple Eagles battled back to bring the score to 14-11. 'Cuse then closed out the set on an 11-5 scoring run to win 25-16.

Niagara jumped ahead 10-8 in set two, but Syracuse answered with a 10-2 run and finished on top, 25-20.

The Purple eagles held a 22-20 lead during the third set before Syracuse ended the match on a five-point scoring run.

Santita Ebangwese recorded two kills, followed by a kill from Kendra Lukacs and two attack errors on Niagara, giving the Orange a 25-22 victory.

Colgate 3, Syracuse 0
Ella Saada recorded a game-high 16 kills for Syracuse in the 3-0 setback against Colgate. Katie Stansbury led the Raiders with 15 kills and Lauren Sanderson had a match-leading 46 assists.

The Orange led 24-23 in set one but the Raiders were able to rally for three straight points with a 'Cuse error and back-to-back kills to win, 26-24.

Syracuse had itself in position to take set two, but Colgate had the answer to five different Orange set points and won the set, 28-26.

The two teams were knotted at 15 in the third set, but a Stansbury kill put the Raiders back in front and they never trailed for the remainder of the match. Colgate took the set 25-21.

Coach's Thoughts
"Colgate was a very similar team to Grand Canyon and their ball control was very good," said head coach Leonid Yelin. "It was a very close game and I don't believe that we used our size to our advantage."

Of Note
With the triumph over Niagara, Yelin is just one victory away from reaching the 550-win mark.

What's Next?
The Orange will head to Manhattan, Kan. Sep 1-2 to compete against Wisconsin, Kansas State and Arkansas in the Kansas State Tournament.

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