UNION, NJ – The Alfred University women's volleyball team ended its weekend at the Kean University Invitational with a pair of three-set wins over Drew University and Hunter College on Saturday.
 
The Saxons (2-8, 0-0 Empire 8) opened the day with a three-set win over the Rangers (2-8, 0-0 Landmark) with scores of 28-26, 25-19 and 25-18. The Saxons then ended the weekend with a 25-18, 25-23, 25-15 win over the Hawks (3-11, 1-0 CUNYAC).
 
"I'm incredibly proud of the way we played today! Honestly, for the entire weekend," Head Coach Mike Honeycutt said. "Our serving was especially tough, which allowed us to play very fluid and score points in bunches. Winning in three both matches today, gives us a ton of confidence moving forward."
 
Match One
Alfred University – 3 | Drew University – 0
 
Taylor Malone (Horseheads, NY/Horseheads) led the match with 17.0 points on 15 kills and two aces. She hit an impressive .324 on 34 attacks with four errors while adding in four digs. Madalynn McGowan (Corona, CA/Norco) recorded a match-high 10 digs while adding an ace. Delaney Sims (Bogart, GA/George Walton Academy) totaled 31 set assists while scoring 4.0 points on three kills and one ace, adding in six digs.
 
Carleigh Santavy (Commerce, MI/Walled Lake Northern) had nine kills on 18 attacks with two errors for a team best hitting percentage of .389 out of attackers with double-digit attacks. Cara Bratthauar (Chambersburg, PA/Chambersburg Area) hit a .556 but on nine attacks, recording five kills and no errors.
 
The opening set was neck-and-neck with neither team getting more than a three-point lead until a Ranger attack was blocked by Bratthauar and Abigail Omelan (Tomball, TX/Tomball Memorial) to make it a four-point lead, 18-14. That would go on to be the largest lead of the set as Drew fought back with an 10-5 scoring run to take what would be their last lead of the set, 24-23.
 
An attack error and a Malone Kill (Sims assist) put the Saxons up, 25-24. Each team would exchange blows until after a Drew kill to make it 26-26, Malone would take the advantage with a kill (Sims assist) and then a set-clinching ace.
 
Alfred University opened the second set with a 3-0 run off of two kills from Malone (Sims and then McGowan assists) and a ball-handling error by the Rangers. Drew returned fire with four, unanswered points to take the lead, an advantage that would be tied multiple times but never relinquished until late in the second half when Bratthauar tied the match 14-14 on a kill and Santavy took the lead with a kill (both assists by Sims). Drew would go on to push back to tie the match, 17-17.
 
Back-to-back kills from Santavy and a service ace from Jessica Lucille Ramirez (Riverside, CA/Hillcrest), as well as an attack error from the Rangers put the Saxons in a favorable spot with a 21-17 lead. Drew scored the next two points on a kill and an ace before a service error began the scoring run the Saxons needed to put it away and go up in the match, 2-0. Meeghan Peterson (Amherst, NY/Williamsville South) recorded an ace that was followed by a kill from Whitney Kilton (Pearl City, HI/Pearl City) (Sims assist) and a set-clinching kill from Sims (Ramirez assist).
 
The Saxons opened up the third and what would go on to be the final set with an impressive 11-1 scoring spree. The Saxons built their lead up to a 19-7 advantage before the Rangers began building momentum. The Rangers did not go down without a fight, after facing a match-point, 24-12 Saxon lead. They scored six unanswered point to make it a 24-18 set before Bratthauar closed out the match with a kill off a pass from Sims.
 
Match Two
Alfred University – 3 | Hunter College – 0
 
Santavy led the Saxons in the second match with 9.0 points on eight kills and a solo block. Bratthauar continued to be precise with a .571 hitting percentage with four kills on seven attacks while adding a solo and an assisted block for a total of 5.5 points. Malone supplemented Santavy with 7.0 points, all on kills. Sims and Julia Abbott (Binghamton, NY/Binghamton) each added 5.0 points as Sims had three kills, two block assists and one ace and Abbott had five kills.
 
Sims had 24 set assists while adding 11 digs, just behind the 12 digs from McGowan. Jade Wolfer (Nunda, NY/Keshequa) and Peterson each had three aces in the win.
 
The first set started off in favor of the Saxons with a 10-6 lead before the Hawks scored four, unanswered to tie it 10-10. AU regained the lead off a bad serve from Hunter before what would go down as the final tie of the set, a kill from a Hunter player, tying the set, 11-11. Santavy recorded AU's 12^th point off a kill (Sims assist) and the score was never tied again as AU went on to win the set on a ball-handling error by the Hawks' setter.
 
The second set saw two ties and no Hunter College lead after the period was equal, 5-5 to open. With a 14-11 Saxon lead, each team started to exchange 3-0 runs until the score was 20-17 in favor of AU. A Hunter College 6-4 scoring run made the match the closest it had been all day with an AU 24-23 lead. Santavy recorded the set-clinching kill off a pass from Sims.
 
Hunter opened the second set with a 2-1 lead but AU responded with six points in a row, highlighted by kills from Malone and Bratthauar and an ace from McGowan. AU kept the pressure on as they continued to build their lead to a 22-12 advantage, following four, unanswered points late in the set with three kills from Malone and an attack error by a Hawks' hitter.
 
Hunter scored three more points and they would go down as the last the Hawks would put on the board. Abbott got the Saxons' 23^rd point on a kill (Sims assist), followed by the solo block from Santavy and finally, recording the match-clinching point off an ace from Norah Galvin (Lake Placid, NY/Lake Placid).
 
The Saxons will next travel to University of Pittsburgh at Bradford on Tuesday, September 23 for a 7:00pm match.