Utica University Athletics

ALBANY, NY - The Utica University women's volleyball team split its pair of matches on Saturday afternoon at the Kahl Campus Center, opening the day with a four-set Empire 8 Conference victory over Russell Sage College (25-19, 13-25, 25-17, 25-13) before falling to St. Lawrence University in straight sets (17-25, 16-25, 19-25).

Utica, 3 Russell Sage 1

Trinity Bailey (West Winfield, NY/Mount Markham) led the Utica offense with a match-high 16 kills on 42 attempts, hitting .262 while adding eight digs, one service ace and one block assist. Elizabeth Hanba (Rome, NY/Rome Free Academy) followed with 10 kills, eight digs and two block assists, while Kamari Davis (Utica, NY/Proctor) turned in an efficient performance with nine kills on 20 attempts for a .350 hitting percentage. Emylie Stanton (Latham, NY/Shaker) contributed six kills and 15 digs, while Mackenzie O'Brien (Troy, NY/Lansingburgh) anchored the Pioneers' presence at the net with seven block assists. Charley Herrington (Colonie, NY/Colonie Central) directed the offense with 20 assists, while Alicia Ancewicz (Greenlawn, NY/John Glenn) and Addison Jones (West Winfield, NY/Mount Markham) added nine apiece. Defensively, Megan Wright (Clay Center, KS/Clay Center Community) led Utica with 21 digs and two service aces, followed by Stanton's 15 and Erin Baldock's (Center Moriches, NY/Center Moriches) 10. Utica finished the match with 45 kills, 72 digs, five service aces and nine total blocks.

The opening set featured a competitive start before Utica began to establish momentum. With the score tied at 4-4, Bailey delivered a kill to spark a five-point Pioneer run, highlighted by another Bailey kill and a Wright service ace, giving Utica a 9-4 advantage. The orange and blue continued to build their lead, eventually pushing ahead 15-9 before Russell Sage trimmed the deficit to three at 15-12. Utica responded with a six-point surge to extend its lead to 22-13, fueled by two kills from Davis and another from Bailey. The Gators made a late push, scoring six consecutive points to cut the margin to 23-19, but Davis halted the run with a kill before a Russell Sage attack error secured the 25-19 opening-set victory.

Russell Sage responded with a strong offensive showing in the second frame, using an early six-point run to take a 6-1 advantage. Utica struggled to find its rhythm offensively as the Gators continued to build their lead, extending the margin to 10-5. The Pioneers briefly cut the deficit to three at 10-7 following consecutive kills from Davis and Layla Rice (West Winfield, NY/Mount Markham), but Russell Sage answered with five of the next six points to move ahead 15-8. The Gators maintained control down the stretch, using another five-point run to extend their lead to 20-9 before eventually taking the set 25-13 to even the match at one set apiece.

The Pioneers bounced back in the third set, overcoming five early ties to regain control of the match. With Utica holding a narrow 6-5 advantage, Bailey and Davis combined for two kills during a four-point run that pushed the lead to 9-5. Bailey continued to pace the offense, adding another kill and a service ace to extend the advantage to 11-6. Russell Sage attempted to work its way back into the frame, but Utica maintained its separation, using kills from Hanba and Bailey to move ahead 18-12. The Gators cut the deficit to 21-17 late in the set before Stanton delivered a kill to give Utica a 22-17 advantage. Three consecutive Russell Sage attack errors closed out the frame, giving the Pioneers a 25-17 victory and a 2-1 match lead.

Utica carried its momentum into the fourth set, opening with three consecutive points before Russell Sage battled back to tie the frame at 6-6. The teams continued trading points until the Gators took a 10-8 advantage, but the Pioneers quickly turned the tide. A Stanton kill sparked a nine-point Utica run, highlighted by two additional Stanton kills, a Jones service ace and three Pioneer block assists, turning the two-point deficit into a commanding 17-10 lead. Bailey and Hanba continued to contribute offensively as Utica extended its advantage to 20-12. With the Pioneers leading 21-13, Wright delivered a service ace before Hanba added another kill to push the lead to 23-13. A Russell Sage attack error brought up match point, and Bailey delivered the final kill to seal the 25-13 set victory and the four-set conference win.

St. Lawrence 3, Utica 0

Trinity Bailey (West Winfield, NY/Mount Markham) paced the Utica offense with seven kills and nine digs, while Elizabeth Hanba (Rome, NY/Rome Free Academy) followed with four kills. Charley Herrington (Colonie, NY/Colonie Central) and Kamari Davis (Utica, NY/Proctor) contributed three kills apiece, with Herrington also recording seven assists and one block assist. Addison Jones (West Winfield, NY/Mount Markham) matched Herrington with seven assists while adding six digs and a service ace. Defensively, Megan Wright (Clay Center, KS/Clay Center Community) led the Pioneers with a match-high 17 digs, three assists and one service ace. Utica also received three digs apiece from Liv Leider (Miami, FL/Felix Varela), Alicia Ancewicz (Greenlawn, NY/John Glenn) and Allison Navarra (North Syracuse, NY/Cicero-North Syracuse).

St. Lawrence jumped out to an early 4-1 advantage behind a pair of service aces, but Utica battled back to even the score at 5-5 following a Hanba kill and a Saints attack error. Bailey added a kill to tie the frame again at 6-6 before St. Lawrence took control with a six-point run, extending its lead to 12-6. The Pioneers continued to battle, using a four-point stretch highlighted by kills from Hanba and Herrington to cut the deficit to 17-15. However, the Saints responded with two consecutive points before eventually extending their lead to 24-16. A St. Lawrence service error gave Utica one final point, but the Saints delivered a kill to close out the opening set, 25-17.

Utica opened the second frame with back-to-back points, including a service ace from Ancewicz, to take an early 2-0 advantage. St. Lawrence quickly responded, and the teams traded points through the opening stages before the Saints established a 9-6 lead. The Pioneers battled back with a Herrington kill, a Jones service ace and a Bailey kill to even the score at 9-9. After another tie at 10-10, St. Lawrence took control with a five-point run to move ahead 15-10. The Saints continued to build their advantage, using a six-point surge to extend the margin to 22-11. Utica managed to score five of the next seven points, highlighted by kills from Davis and Rice, but St. Lawrence closed out the set 25-16 to take a 2-0 match lead.

The Pioneers looked to extend the match in the third frame, opening with the first point before St. Lawrence answered. The teams traded points through three early ties, but the Saints gradually established a 7-4 advantage. Utica responded with consecutive points, including a block from Davis and Herrington, to trim the deficit to 7-6. St. Lawrence maintained its lead through the middle stages, eventually moving ahead 14-10 before a Stanton service ace helped Utica cut the margin to 14-12. The Saints responded with three consecutive points to extend their advantage to 17-12, but the Pioneers continued to fight, using back-to-back Bailey kills to pull within three at 18-15. St. Lawrence answered with consecutive points to push its lead to 20-15 before Utica made one final push. A Saints service error and a Stanton kill brought the Pioneers within three at 22-19, but St. Lawrence scored the final three points to secure the 25-19 set victory and complete the sweep. 

With the split in Saturday's action, the Pioneers move to 9-14 overall and post a 5-2 mark in Empire 8 play. The team returns to action on Friday, October 23 as the team travels west to take on the SUNY Geneseo Knights. Game time is set for 7pm from Geneseo, NY.