GENEVA, N.Y. –The William Smith volleyball team earned back-to-back sweeps this afternoon over Hamilton and Alfred to close out the William Smith Tournament with a 3-0 record. With the wins, the Herons improve to 6-0 on the season, while the Continentals fall to 1-2 and the Saxons fall to 0-8.
 
Senior Malya Sayre led the Herons through two matches, combining for 42 kills on an impressive .410 hitting percentage. She averaged 7.00 kills per set through six sets and added 13 digs, nine service aces, six blocks and two assists. Sayre's 9.25 points per set led to her being named the William Smith Tournament's Most Valuable Player.
 
Sophomore Emily Fulton added 14 kills (.278), 12 digs, and two service aces on the afternoon, while senior Jaylynn McCarthy added 13 kills (.481) and seven blocks out of the middle. Senior Hope Von Dohlen chipped in 12 kills (.320), four blocks and four digs through the two wins. Sophomore libero Kali Vanderhoof led William Smith's defensive efforts with 31 digs, five assists, and one service ace.
 
Sophomore setter Delainy Williams was named to the William Smith All-Tournament team after three strong performances this weekend. This afternoon, Williams tallied 76 assists, 11 digs, six kills (.600) and four blocks. She averaged 12.67 assists per set to lead William Smith to three-straight victories.
  
MATCH MOMENTS:
 
Match 1 (Hamilton):

• The Herons came out firing in set one, putting down 16 kills (.196) as a team compared to the Continentals' 13 (.133). Sayre led the way with eight kills and added five digs as William Smith took a 25-21 win in the opening set.
• William Smith continued to roll in set two as it combined for 19 kills (.370) as a team, while allowing Hamilton to a match-low 12 kills (.265). The Herons continued to impress from the service line and forced the Continentals out of system often. William Smith closed out set two on top 25-17.
• The final set saw both teams trade momentum as the teams traded the lead four times and tallied seven tie scores. William Smith put down 15 kills (.178) to close out the sweep with a 28-26 win in the nonconference matchup.

Match stats:

• Sayre paced the Herons with 23 kills, hitting .306 through three sets. Fulton (.154) and McCarthy (.368) chipped in seven kills each in the win. Von Dohlen added six kills (.167) for the Herons.
• Williams tallied a match-high 40 assists in the win. She added seven digs, four kills (.571) and three blocks in the sweep.
• The Herons combined for 57 digs as a team and were led by Vanderhoof with 17. Senior Marin Montagne added 10, while Williams chipped in seven for William Smith.
• William Smith continued to impress from the service line and combined for nine service aces. Fulton led the way with four, while senior Cydney Fernandez added two in the win.

Match 2 (Alfred):

• William Smith picked up right where it left off in its second match of the day, combining for 14 kills (.478) and keeping Alfred to just five kills, hitting a -.154 hitting percentage. The Herons closed out set one in dominant fashion, defeating the Saxons 25-10 to open the match.
• The Herons continued on their momentum into the second set and used a strong service run by Fulton to close out set two on top 25-11. William Smith went on an 11-2 run to close out the second set on top.
• William Smith continued to shine in the third set, firing off a match-high 17 kills, while hitting an impressive .762 clip. The Herons held the Saxons to just five kills (.083) after opening the set on a 5-0 run behind a strong service run from Fulton again. William Smith closed out the sweep with a dominating 25-9 win in the third set to finish the William Smith Tournament 3-0.

Match stats:

• Sayre led the Herons in match two with 19 kills, hitting an impressive .586 clip through three sets. Fulton added seven kills (.600) in the win, while McCarthy (.750) and Von Dohlen (.714) chipped in six kills each for William Smith.
• Williams tallied a match-high 36 assists in the sweep. She added four digs, two kills (.667), one block and a service ace for the Herons. First-year Madilyn Kresl came off the bench and recorded two assists and two service aces in the win.
• The Herons combined for 39 digs as a team and were led by Vanderhoof with 14. Montagne and Fulton added seven each for William Smith.
• William Smith continued to impress from the service line and combined for 10 aces as a team. Sayre led the way with three, while Fulton and Kresl tallied two aces each.
• The Green and White showed strong at the net, tallying six blocks compared to the Saxons zero. McCarthy recorded a team-high four, while Von Dohlen chipped in three.

COACHES CORNER:
 
"This was an amazing weekend to open up the new floor in Bristol!" said Head Coach Derryk Williams. "Malya was unbelievable from start to finish and led in all aspects of her game. She played with poise, confidence, and a whole lot of swag which was awesome to see! It was a team effort from top to bottom, getting contributions in different matches from every player! Marin came in today in a huge way and was relentless in the back row and I am really excited to get back in the gym with this group on Monday to continue to improve!"
 
UP NEXT:
 
William Smith will be back in action next weekend when it travels to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, for the Gettysburg Tri-Match. The Herons will face off against the Bullets on Saturday, Sept. 13, at 11 a.m. and will close out action against York at 1:30 p.m.