ALBANY, N.Y. (9/15/23) – The Nichols College women's volleyball team swept their first round of matches at the Union College/Russel Sage Crosstown Challenge on Friday evening, blanking host Russel Sage College (NECC) and fellow visitor Skidmore College (Liberty League) by 3-0 scores.

With the pair of victories on the day, women's volleyball sets a new program record for both longest winning streak and best start to a season, improving to 9-0 overall on the year. Russel Sage College, with the loss to the Bison, dropped to 5-4 on the season, while Skidmore fell back to 4-5 overall.

Game #1 @ Russel Sage College (25-17, 25-23, 25-13)

Junior Luna Colozzo led the way with a match-high 11 kills on a .500 hitting percentage, while sophomore Ruby St. Onge finished with a team-best 14 assists. Senior libero Liz Diorio chalked up a match-best 13 digs for the Bison, while defensively, freshman middle hitter Maille Ianniruberto led the floor in blocks with three.
Three straight attack errors by the Gators set the tone for the opening frame for Nichols, which eventually translated into a 16-10 lead down the stretch. With Russel Sage scrambling to narrow the gap, Nichols continued to find ways to string points together, ultimately claiming the win 25-17 to kick off the action.

The second set once again saw the Bison secure the first three points, but also saw a more structured Gator attack. After tying the set 5-5, Russel Sage remained right on the Bison's heels, never straying more than three points behind. Past the midway point, with the score knotted up at 15-all, Nichols finally got their break by outscoring the Gators 7-2, placing the advantage back in their hands at 22-17. To keep things interesting, Russel Sage battled back to once again tie things up with five unanswered points, before Nichols claimed the 2-0 match lead with a 25-23 second set triumph.

The third set began as a stalemate, but eventually the scales tilted back in the Bison's favor in the form of a 10-2 scoring rush. However, the floodgates remained open for the visitors, as Nichols continued to find the floor for another 6-0 run featuring three straight kills by Luna Colozzo and a service ace from sophomore Kya Burdier. With the score already at 21-9, offensive miscues by the Gators took care of the rest, with Nichols claiming the match victory by a 25-13 score.

Game #2 vs Skidmore College (26-24, 25-18, 25-14)

Senior Haylee Granato (Northern Cambria, Pa./Northern Cambria) led the way for the Bison this time with a match-best 16 kills, along with hitting .361 in the effort. Sophomore Kya Burdier claimed her own match-best performance, tallying 22 assists.

Skidmore controlled the pace early on the first set, but later fell victim to a 6-0 run by the Bison which brought them to within one of the Thoroughbreds, 23-22. In an effort to thwart the Nichols comeback, Skidmore secured the next point to place themselves in position for the win, but just as quickly saw it all taken away by the Bison with another 4-0 run. As a result, the first set went to Nichols by a score of 26-24.  

Powered by their late surge in the first frame, Nichols continued their offensive pursuits early-on in the second. With a 6-2 lead in hand thanks to a 4-0 run, it was all about remaining one step ahead from there, with Nichols expanding their lead up to 17-13. Nearing the tail end of the frame, the Bison outscored the Thoroughbreds by a 6-1 margin, boosting their lead to 23-15 off three Skidmore offensive errors, and service aces from both junior Ryley Plourde and Kya Burdier. The new lead proved too much for Skidmore, who fell to the Bison 25-18 in set two.

As was the case in the third set against Russel Sage, the Bison eventually took complete control of the outcome. With the set score at 7-5 Nichols, the Bison notched an 8-0 run to make the extend the score to 15-7, which lead to the Bison maintaining the lead throughout the remainder of the stanza. A 4-0 run that featured three more attacking errors by Skidmore, and one final kill by Luna Colozzo, secured the third and final set for Nichols, 25-18.

Day two of the Union College/Russel Sage Crosstown Challenge commences tomorrow, September 16^th with the action shifting to Union College's Viniar Athletic Center. The Bison clash with the Garnet Chargers at 10:00 AM, as well as Springfield College later on in the day with a 2:00 PM start.