GENEVA, N.Y.—The William Smith volleyball team saw its 11-match win streak come to a close as it fell in a five-set thriller to No. 20 Ithaca in a Liberty League contest in Bristol Gymnasium this evening. With the loss, the Herons fall to 14-3 overall and 4-1 in conference play, while the Bombers move to 15-3 overall with a 5-0 mark in the Liberty League.

The thrilling five set match saw both sides put on impressive performances. The Herons combined for 51 kills, hitting .160 as a team, while the Bombers collectively put down 56 kills on a .145 hitting percentage. William Smith held an 8-5 advantage in blocks, but Ithaca found it success from the service line, tallying 10 aces compared to the Herons' three.

Junior Marin Montagne led William Smith with a career-high 16 kills, hitting .216 on the night. She added 14 digs for her sixth double-double of the season. Classmate Malya Sayre added 13 kills (.075) and 18 digs for her ninth double-double of the season. Junior Hope Von Dohlen chipped in nine kills (.125) and four blocks in the loss.

Naomi Clauhs led the Bombers with 15 kills (.222) and two blocks in the win. Wesley Slavin tallied 47 assists through five sets for Ithaca.

MATCH MOMENTS:

• The Herons came out firing in the opening set, putting down 16 kills as a team, hitting .200 collectively. They held the Bombers to just 10 kills (.175) and were led by Montagne with five kills on 10 swings to earn a 25-21 win in the opening set.
• Ithaca responded well in the second set with 12 kills (.267) as a team. William Smith was plagued with errors, recording eight with only eight kills, handing the Bombers a 25-15 win in set two.
• The Bombers continued on their momentum in the third set, putting down a match-high 16 kills (.159) while holding the Herons to nine (.143). Jayden Wiese came off the bench for Ithaca and tallied six kills in the set to earn the Bombers a 25-19 win in the third.
• William Smith flipped the script in the must-win fourth set and combined for 11 kills (.286) as a team. The Herons held Ithaca to a match-low nine kills and a -.059 hitting percentage to earn a convincing 25-16 win to force a fifth set.
• The Bombers jumped out to a 4-1 lead in an exciting fifth set that saw Ithaca tally nine kills (.208) and William Smith tally seven (.167). Despite a late comeback that brought the Herons within one, the Bombers found a kill and a service ace by Gabriela Gonzalez-Abreu to slip away with a 15-12 win over William Smith.

MATCH STATS:

• Montagne paced the Herons with 16 kills (.216) and was followed by Sayre with 13 (.075). Von Dohlen added nine kills (.125), while junior Jaylynn McCarthy chipped in six (.263) out of the middle.
• First-year setter Delainy Williams had an impressive showing for the Herons, tallying 44 assists through five sets. She added six digs, four kills (.800) and one block in the loss.
• William Smith combined for 78 digs as a team and had four players record double digit digs. First-year libero Kali Vanderhoof tallied a match-high 22 digs, while Sayre added 18. Montagne recorded 14, while junior defensive specialist Cydney Fernandez chipped in 12.
• The Herons showed strong at the net, tallying eight blocks as a team. First-year Arielle Newsome led the team with six, while Von Dohlen chipped in four. McCarthy added two out of the middle.

COACHES CORNER:

"Tonight was a really good match between two super high-level teams," said Head Coach Derryk Williams. "I was really proud of the way that our team responded after the third set and battled until the very last point. Ithaca is a great team with a ton of experience, and we definitely got better from playing them tonight, and can't wait to see them in another month or so. I am excited to get back in the gym tomorrow, improve, and prepare for Skidmore on Saturday."

UP NEXT:
 
William Smith will be back in action Saturday, Oct. 19, when it heads to Saratoga Springs, to take on Skidmore in a Liberty League matchup. First serve between the Herons and the Thoroughbreds is set for 2 p.m.