ITHACA, N.Y.—The third-seeded William Smith volleyball team defeated second-seeded Union this evening in a Liberty League semifinal matchup in Ben Light Gymnasium. With the win, the Herons improve to 23-6 overall and advance to tomorrow's conference title match against No. 15 Ithaca. The Garnet Chargers concluded their season with a 22-9 overall record.
William Smith dominated the stat sheet in the upset win over Union. The Herons combined for 51 kills, hitting .269 as a team, while the Garnet Chargers put down only 30 kills, hitting .126. William Smith held a 9-4 edge in service aces as well as an 8-6 advantage in blocks in the win. The Herons tallied 47 assists and combined for 52 digs, while the Garnet Chargers were held to just 29 assists and 45 digs.
Senior outside
Malya Sayre led William Smith with a match-high 20 kills (.235) in the win. She added eight digs, and two service errors for the Herons. Sophomore
Emily Fulton chipped in 10 kills (.318) and added 15 digs for her fourth double-double of the season. Fulton added three blocks and one service ace in the sweep.
Senior
Jaylynn McCarthy put down nine kills (.615) out of the middle. She added two blocks and two digs in the win. Senior
Hope Von Dohlen (.000) and sophomore
Arielle Newsome (.273) chipped in five kills each in the win and combined for five blocks and a dig in the win. Sophomore libero
Kali Vanderhoof led the defensive efforts with 15 digs.
Shannon McGrath led the Garnet Chargers with 15 kills (.317), seven digs, two service aces and a block in the loss. Allie Kronenberg tallied a team-high 25 assists for Union.
MATCH MOMENTS:
- William Smith came out hot in the opening set, putting down 12 kills (.273) as a team compared to Union's match-low seven kills (.043). The Herons jumped out to an early lead and never looked back, closing out the opening set on top, 25-14.
- Union fought back in the second set, jumping out to an early 19-12 lead before a strong service run from first-year Madilyn Kresl chipped away at the Garnet Charger lead. The Herons put down a match-high 21 kills (.233) as they rallied to win set two, 30-28.
- William Smith closed out the semifinal sweep with a dominant performance in the third set, putting down 18 kills (.324) as a team compared to Union's eight (.088). The Herons finished the third set with a 4-0 run powered by two Fulton kills to close out set three with a 25-17 win.
MATCH STATS:
- Sayre paced the Herons with 20 kills (.235), while Fulton chipped in 10 kills (.318) in the win. McCarthy added nine kills (.615) out of the middle, while Von Dohlen (.000) and Newsome (.273) put down five kills each in the sweep.
- Sophomore setter Delainy Williams had another standout performance for the Herons, recording a match-high 42 assists in the win. She added seven digs, three blocks, one service ace and a kill (.333) for William Smith.
- The Herons combined for 52 digs in the sweep and were led by Vanderhoof and Fulton with 15 each. Sayre chipped in eight digs, while Williams added seven. Senior Marin Montagne recorded four digs in the sweep.
- William Smith continued to impress from the service line, combining for nine aces as a team. Senior Cydney Fernandez led the way with three, while Sayre and Kresl added two each. Fulton and Williams added one ace each in the win.
- The Green and White combined for eight blocks as a team and were led by Newsome, Fulton and Williams with three blocks each. McCarthy and Von Dohlen added two blocks each in the sweep.
COACHES CORNER:
"Absolutely amazing performance from our team today!" said Head Coach
Derryk Williams. "We dominated at times and battled like crazy when things weren't going our way. To come back from 21-14 to win the second set showed pure tenacity and grit. I'm really proud of the way we played and can't wait to bring home a title tomorrow!"
UP NEXT:
William Smith will be back in action tomorrow as it takes on top-seeded Ithaca for the Liberty League championship. The title match between the Herons and the No. 15 Bombers is set for 5 p.m. in Ithaca's Ben Light Gymnasium.
