PITTSFORD, N.Y. – The St. John Fisher College women's volleyball team earned a pair of straight set wins on Saturday to go 3-0 at the SJFC Invite inside the Manning and Napier Varsity Gym. The Cardinals started the day off by defeating Northern Vermont-Johnson (25-13, 25-15, 25-23) and then finished off the invite with a victory against D'Youville (25-17, 25-14, 25-15).
Fisher extends their winning streak to six with their record at 9-5. Sophomore
Alea Steigerwald led all players in both matches with 17 and 14 kills respectively. Junior
Rebecca Hay recorded 63 assists combined over the two matches. Before their match against D'Youville, the Cardinals honored their senior class of
Izzy Smith,
Olivia Levulis and
Emily Risch.
FISHER 3, NVU-JOHNSON 0
The Cardinals held a tight lead over the Badgers to start things off in the first set. A five-point burst pushed the lead to eight with Steigerwald serving up four straight aces. Fisher finished off the set on a 7-2 run to take the opening frame.
After the Badgers got off to an early lead, the Cardinals quickly caught up with a 5-1 run to tie it up a five a piece. It was back-and-forth until Fisher won seven of eight points to go up 19-12. A four-point streak by the Cardinals led them to claim the set and take a 2-0 advantage.
Smith earned two of the first three points for the Cardinals to start the third set. Fisher found themselves down by six halfway through the frame when they would rattle off 11 of the next 13 points to lead 22-19. It was 23-all when the Cardinals took the lead on a Badger error. On their first opportunity of match point, Hay set up Steigerwald for the kill and the win.
FISHER 3, D'YOUVILLE 0
The final match of the tournament was a duel between two teams that were 2-0 on the weekend heading in. A 7-1 run gave the Cardinals a 13-8 edge in the first set. Fisher was able to coast the rest of the way with taking the final three points of the opening frame.
Fisher got to work right away again in the second set by going up 7-3. Four straight points from the Cardinals made it a 10-point game at 21-11. A
Molly Taylor ace made it set point for Fisher and a Steigerwald kill gave them a 2-0 edge in sets.
The Cardinals went up 8-2 to kick off the third set with an
Alexis Mancha ace capping off the run. It was Taylor's serve on match point and the junior was able to ace it past the Spartans to earn the victory.
Fisher never trailed throughout the entire match against the Spartans. Smith made the most of her senior day with posting seven kills in both matches on the day. Hay had a game-high nine digs versus the Spartans.
The Cardinals start conference play next weekend. They will head to Utica on Friday for a 6 p.m. tilt against the Pioneers and then they head to Sage on Saturday at 2 p.m.
