Women's Volleyball | 3/28/2021 7:49:00 PM

ALFRED, N.Y. – The St. John Fisher College women's volleyball team remained unbeaten after the Cardinals swept both ends of an Empire 8 doubleheader against the Alfred University Saxons on Sunday.  With the wins, Fisher improved to 5-0 on the year and closed out the day atop the Empire 8 standings.  The Saxons fell to 2-4 following the sweep.

FISHER 3, ALFRED 1

The Cardinals jumped out to an early advantage in the first set after back-to-back kills from Lindsey DeBonis and Gracie Jacob sparked a 4-0 run that made it 5-2 in the visitors' favor.  As the set wore on, Alfred would find a rhythm and forged ahead11-9, but Fisher quickly reclaimed the momentum and strung together 10 unanswered points including a pair of kills from Jacob to open up a 19-11 cushion.

Ahead by eight points, Fisher continued to attack the net with Jacob hammering home two more kills as Fisher took the opening set, 25-15.

After falling in the second set, 25-17, Fisher found itself in an early hole as the Saxons led, 9-7, in the third.  Trailing by two, Fisher scored four quick points including back-to-back kills from Jacob and Alea Steigerwald to steal the lead, 11-9.

The advantage would change hands four more times late in the set until the Cardinals gained control with three straight kills to open up a 17-14 advantage.  Alfred would eventually cut the deficit to one point, 23-22, but the Cardinals called a timeout to regroup and closed out the win, 25-23.

Fisher carried its momentum over into the fourth set and quickly built a 9-3 lead.  Following a timeout by Alfred, Fisher orchestrated a 5-1 run to push its edge to nine, 18-9.  The Saxons would pull to within seven, but were never able to overcome their slow start as Fisher scored the final three points needed to complete the win.

Jacob was a force on the pins for Fisher as the freshman clubbed a career-high 18 kills in the win.  Steigerwald finished with 15 kills and 11 digs while DeBonis added nine kills and nine digs of her own.  Kara Balmer smacked four kills and had three aces at the service line while Rebecca Hay handed out 40 assists.

FISHER 3, ALFRED 0

It was all Fisher in the opening set as the Cardinals never trailed and held a 10-7 lead after Sydney French smashed a kill on a feed from Katie Leaty.  Alfred continued to battle and would tie the frame at 12-12, but five straight points from Fisher fueled by kills from Delayne Young and DeBonis made it 17-12 in the Cardinals' favor.

As the set continued, Alfred would weather the storm and came to within two points, 20-18, but Fisher took control and scored five of the set's final eight points to hold on for the 25-21 win.

Already holding a 1-0 lead in the match to begin the second set, head coach Kelly Greapentrog's squad shook off a slow start and used a 7-2 run that featured two kills from DeBonis to turn a three-point gap into a two-point lead, 20-18.  After notching its 21st point on a service error by the Saxons, Fisher saw its lead slip away as Alfred knotted things up at 21-21 to force the Cardinals into a timeout.  The break in action did the trick as DeBonis put down a kill before Jacob followed suit with a kill of her own and then closed out the frame at the service line with an ace.

Already ahead by two sets, the Cardinals seized the momentum in the third and deciding frame after sprinting out to an 11-5 lead.  Fisher kept its foot on the gas as the set continued with Young eventually taking over at the net with three kills to go along with a pair of aces in a 9-1 burst.

Leading 20-7, Alfred would get two points back, but Fisher closed out the match after reeling off five of the last seven points in a 25-15 victory.

DeBonis paved the way for Fisher with nine kills in the nightcap along with 11 more digs.  Young and French each finished with seven kills in the win while Leaty was credited with 29 assists and nine digs.

The Cardinals will return to action at 7 p.m. on Friday in a critical Empire 8 pairing when they host East Avenue rival Nazareth College inside Manning and Napier Varsity Gymnasium on Bobby Wanzer Court.