SCRANTON, Pa. –The William Smith volleyball team cruised to back-to-back victories this afternoon at the Scranton Tournament as it defeated Mary Washington 3-1 before sweeping Misericordia 3-0. The Herons improved to 3-0 to start the 2025 season.
 
Senior Malya Sayre led William Smith through two matches, combining for 30 kills on a .141 hitting percentage. She added 10 digs, four service aces and three blocks to lead the Herons to back-to-back wins.

Sophomore Emily Fulton added 21 kills through seven sets, hitting an impressive .315 clip. Fulton added 14 digs, six service aces and a solo block in the wins. Senior Hope Von Dohlen chipped in 11 kills (.103), nine blocks and eight digs, while sophomore Arielle Newsome recorded eight kills (.263) and five blocks out of the middle for the Herons.
 
Sophomore setter Delainy Williams tallied 59 assists through seven sets this afternoon, averaging 8.43 per set. She added 12 digs, one block and one service ace in the wins. Sophomore libero Kali Vanderhoof led the defensive efforts for William Smith, recording 22 digs on the afternoon. She added seven service aces, and seven assists in the wins. Vanderhoof was named to the All-Tournament Team for her performances this weekend.
  
MATCH MOMENTS:
 
Match 1 (Mary Washington):

• The opening set saw the two sides trade the early points until the Herons grabbed the momentum and went on a 4-0 run to take the lead. William Smith maintained that lead through the remainder of the set as the Herons combined for nine kills (.174) to close out set one on top 25-19.
• Set two saw both teams' offenses come alive as the Herons put down 12 kills (.081) compared to the Eagles' 11 (.152). Mary Washington grabbed the late momentum and used that push to grab a 25-20 win in set two, tying the match at 1-1.
• The back-and-forth battle continued in set three as both sides traded points until the 22-22 mark. William Smith used a big kill by Sayre and a service ace by Fulton to close out the tight set on top 25-22.
• The fourth set was all William Smith as the Herons combined for 10 kills (.350) to jump out to a 20-12 lead. The Herons' clean play pushed them past the Eagles as William Smith finished on top 25-15 thanks to a big Von Dohlen kill.

Match stats:

• Sayre paced the Herons with 18 kills (.174) through four sets, while Von Dohlen (.105) and Fulton (.179) added eight kills each in the win. Newsome chipped in five kills (.273) out of the middle for William Smith.
• Williams tallied a match-high 35 assists and added six digs and one service ace in the win.
• William Smith combined for 44 digs as a team and were led by Vanderhoof and Sayre with eight each. Von Dohlen chipped in a season-high seven digs through four sets.
• The Herons impressed from the service line and combined for 15 aces as a team. Fulton led the way with four aces, while Sayre added three. Senior Marin Montagne, first-year Lily Wittgraefe and Vanderhoof chipped in two aces each in the win.
• The Green and White continued to show strong at the net and tallied nine blocks as a team. Von Dohlen recorded a team-high six blocks, while senior Jaylynn McCarthy added four out of the middle.

Match 2 (Misericordia):

• William Smith came out firing in the opening set, combining for 12 kills (.159) as a team. The Herons jumped out to a 22-13 lead and never looked back, closing out the set on top 25-20 with a big Sayre kill.
• The Herons continued on their momentum and shot out to a 7-2 lead to open the second set. William Smith maintained its lead throughout the second and held the Cougars to a -.091 hitting percentage to close out set two on top 25-18.
• William Smith's offense continued to roll in the third set as the Herons put down a match-high 13 kills (.310) while holding Misericordia to just nine kills (.103). A Vanderhoof service ace and a Fulton kill closed out the sweep with a dominating 25-15 win in set three.

Match stats:

• Fulton led the Herons with a season-high 13 kills, hitting an impressive .462 clip. Sayre followed with 12 kills (.103), while Von Dohlen (.100) and Newsome (.250) added three kills each in the win.
• Williams continued to shine in the setter position, tallying a match-high 24 assists. She added six digs and a block in the sweep.
• The Herons combined for 37 digs as a team and were led by Vanderhoof with a match-high 14. Fulton and Wittgraefe added seven each, while Williams chipped in six digs in the win.
• William Smith continued to impress from the service line, recording 11 aces as a team. Vanderhoof tallied a career-high five aces, while Wittgraefe and Fulton chipped in two aces each.
• The Green and White held a 7-5 edge in blocks against the Cougars and were led by Newsome with four and Sayre and Von Dohlen with three each.

COACHES CORNER:
 
"This was a great start to our season!" said Head Coach Derryk Williams. "We got better every single match and played Heron volleyball at the end of the day. Kali was super steady throughout the weekend, and Emily did an amazing job coming off the bench and making an immediate impact. It was a full team effort, and our bench energy was electric. Proud of the start and excited for the next steps!"
 
UP NEXT:
 
William Smith will be back in action next weekend when it hosts Buffalo State, Hamilton and Alfred for the 2025 William Smith Tournament. The Herons will open up against the Bengals on Friday, Sept. 5 at 6 p.m. in Bristol Gym.