ALFRED, NY – The Alfred University women's volleyball team picked up a three-set sweep in Empire 8 action over Elmira College on Saturday morning before falling in a tight, five-set non-conference match right after in the Terry S. Galanis Family Arena.
 
The Saxons (4-5, 3-3 Empire 8) handed the Soaring Eagles (5-2, 3-2 Empire 8) only their second loss of the season in both the conference standings as well as overall play. The first match was won with set scores of 25-20, 25-22 and 25-13 before the Saxons dropped a five-set decision, 17-25, 25-16, 13-25, 25-21 and 10-15. The final matches of the regular season for the Saxons provided them with a win percentage of .444, the highest it has been since the 2000 season with a record of 23-14 (.622) and the first time that the Saxons have swept the Soaring Eagles in three sets ever and first time sweeping them since 1993's 2-0 win back when college volleyball was played best of three sets.
 
"I was really proud of our performance today across the board," Head Coach Dakota Pruiss said. "I think to sweep a team like Elmira is a huge victory and testament to the work we have been putting in. We are absolutely peaking at the right time."
 
Two Saxons hit double-digit scoring in the first match as Sarah Raeman (Canandaigua, NY/Canandaigua) led with 15.0 points from 13 kills on 19 attempts with one error (.632 hitting average) while adding two aces and supplementing two digs on defense. Rylee Russin (Broomfield, CO/Broomfield) followed with 10.0 points as no Soaring Eagle player had double-digits. Russin's 10.0 points came from six kills, three aces and two block assists, proving to be a threat on any location on the court, adding a team-high eight digs.
 
Alfred University totaled 11 aces in the first match as three came from Russin and another three came from Darian Ortiz (Santa Fe, NM/St. Michael's). Fiona McNeil (Fayetteville, NY/Jamesville-DeWitt) led the Saxons at the net as she had four block assists while Kayle Hatfield (Descanso, CA/Granite Hills) had three. Amanda Burns (Pine Bush, NY/Pine Bush) had a match-high 27 set assists as she had two kills, one ace, one solo block and one block assists while adding five digs.
 
"Sarah Raeman had a career day today. She was unstoppable at the net," Coach Pruiss said. "I also was proud of performances by Darian Ortiz and Amanda Burns in the first match and Julia Fanning in the second. It was a nice way to get some other people opportunities who haven't seen much playing time this season, and to almost sneak another win away is a good feeling."
 
Raeman added another double-digit performance in the nightcap, adding 10 kills and a block assist for 10.5 points. It was Honor Edmands (Reno, NV/Reno) who led the scoring efforts in the five-set loss, having 10 kills, one ace, one solo block and four block assists.
 
Ortiz had a defensive showcase as she had 27 digs along with five assists and three aces. Hatfield also had over 20 digs as she had 22 in the closing match. Julia Fanning (Wallkll, NY/Wallkill Senior) had a daily-high of 29 assists as she also snuck in six kills on second touch attempts, and she had one ace, one block assist and eight digs.
 
The Saxons will next look towards the Empire 8 Tournament but will have to wait until a full seeding picture after the completion of the regular season for the rest of the E8 opponents as they finish up on Sunday, April 18.