Cobleskill, NY – The SUNY Cobleskill women's volleyball team dropped a 3-0 SUNYAC decision to Alfred State on Friday night inside Iorio Gymnasium, falling by scores of 16-25, 16-25 and 24-26.
Senior
Hallie Gasner (Middleburgh, NY) led the Fighting Tigers' attack with seven kills while adding four digs and a service ace. Fellow seniors
Emma Hinze (Altenburg, NY) and
Kathleen Smart (Nashville, TN) each finished with six kills. Hinze added eight digs and four service aces, while Smart contributed eight digs, two aces and a block assist. Senior setter
Baylee Kirschberg (Lindenhurst, NY) directed the offense with a team-high 18 assists to go with seven digs, while libero
Jojo Haycock (Bowie, MD) added five digs in the back row.
The two sides finished even with 35 digs apiece, but Alfred State was more efficient offensively, hitting .246 with 34 kills compared to Cobleskill's .025 hitting percentage and 21 kills. The Pioneers also held a 31-21 edge in assists and a 12-8 advantage in service aces.
Alfred State opened the first set with a 4-1 lead before the Tigers trimmed the deficit to 8-7 on a Hinze kill off a Kirschberg assist. The Pioneers created some separation with a run that pushed their lead to 16-11, but Cobleskill answered as a Gasner ace helped pull the Tigers within three at 16-13. Alfred State responded with another timely run late in the frame and closed out the opening set, 25-16.
Cobleskill came out sharper in the second set and grabbed an early 5-3 lead behind a pair of Hinze aces. Alfred State answered with a 7-1 run to take control, 10-6, before the teams traded points through the middle of the set. A Smart kill and another Hinze ace sparked a 3-0 Cobleskill run that cut the deficit to 16-13. The Pioneers, however, answered with a 6-1 stretch to build a 22-14 advantage and went on to take the set, 25-16.
The Tigers put together their strongest push of the night in the third. After Alfred State scored the first four points, Cobleskill responded with four straight of its own, highlighted by a Gasner kill and a Hinze ace to even the set at 4-4. A well-placed kill from
Audrey Davis (Hudson Falls, NY) kept the Tigers within one at 10-9, and Cobleskill continued to hang around before a 3-0 run tied the frame at 18-18. The Tigers then found another gear, rattling off five straight points to take a 23-19 lead behind back-to-back aces from Smart. Hinze followed with a powerful kill to give Cobleskill set point at 24-21, but Alfred State answered with five consecutive points to steal the set, 26-24, and close out the match.
Up Next:
The Fighting Tigers return to Iorio Gymnasium on Saturday, October 24, when they host SUNY Cortland at 1 p.m. for Senior Day.
