The Knights volleyball team traveled to Boston this past weekend, where they faced Babson College, MIT and Endicott College in the MIT tournament held in Cambridge, Mass. The matches’ scores did not fall in favor of the Knights as they went 0-3 on the weekend.
On Friday Sept. 13, their match versus Babson lasted three sets with scores of 25-23, 25-20 and 27-25. Senior outside hitters Grace Cergol and Abby May combined for 13 kills. Senior libero Sam Mendelsohn added one dig while junior setter Mary Bartkus contributed 15 assists. The Knights fell in three tightly contested sets.
The first Saturday game versus MIT was closer than the previous day. The match stretched to four sets with scores of 27-29, 26-24, 25-19 and 25-19. Cergol, who continues to look stellar for the Knights, swung for 16 kills while sophomore outside hitter Maddie McLaughlin added another seven. First-year setter Grace Thomas had 21 assists, while Bartkus again added 15 assists of her own.
The second match on Saturday versus Endicott ended in more Knights disappointment when they fell in three straight sets with scores of 25-21, 25-17 and 26-24. Geneseo seemed to be on the verge of sending the match to a fourth set but came up just short.
Following their tough defeats Mendelsohn took time to reflect on the team’s situation, “I believe this past weekend in its entirety taught our team the most about our weaknesses,” she said. “Our ability to pick up tips and off-speed shots struggled and our eagerness to put balls down lacked.”
The Knights faced SUNY Brockport on Tuesday Sept. 17; this was the Knights’ “Dig Pink” game. Cergol expressed the game’s importance, “Everyone on the team has been raising money individually to contribute to our campaign goal of $2,500, and we’ve been selling our Dig Pink t-shirts and bracelets in the Union for everyone on campus to buy,” she said. “We’ve also been promoting the campaign on all social media platforms giving the opportunity for anyone to donate to the great cause.”
Before the Brockport game, Cergol also hinted at new game plans. “Fans should expect to see a super competitive game between two conference rivals and to see us running really creative plays and doing different things,” she said.
With match scores of 25-17, 25-16 and 25-14, the Knights took down a SUNYAC rival in three sets. This was a very solid match all around for the Knights who didn’t let a single Golden Eagle tip hit the floor. McLaughlin had the crowd on their feet with eight huge kills and five digs. Mendelsohn unsurprisingly added a match-high 15 digs. To add to the victory, senior middle blocker Kat Vernon added five kills and two digs.
Cergol and Mendelsohn each mentioned a teammate that they believe deserves recognition for their hard work. “[Junior middle blocker Kiersten Colvin] works so hard and constantly leads our team by example,” Cergol said. “Kiersten is one of the smartest people on the court and knows exactly what to do with a good and bad ball.”
Mendelsohn acknowledged Vernon. “She is constantly giving energy in our gym and works hard to put up a big block on strong outsides on opposing teams. She has also worked hard to become more of an offensive threat and that is definitely showing this year,” she said.
Up next for the Knights is a road trip to Scranton, Pa. on Saturday Sept. 21. There, they will play the University of Scranton at noon and Rowan University at 2 p.m.