ITHACA, NY – Hartwick volleyball lost a pair of matches at Ithaca College on Saturday to wrap up Empire 8 Conference play. The Hawks lost in three sets to the host Bombers, 10-25, 13-25, 19-25. Hartwick had St. John Fisher on the ropes in the second match after taking the first two sets, 25-19, 26-24. The Cardinals outlasted the Hawks in the third set, 28-26, and then took the fourth and fifth sets, 25-11 and 16-14 to win the match.
           
With today's results, Hartwick is now 9-20 overall. The Hawks close out their Empire 8 schedule with a 2-6 mark.
           
Against Fisher, the Hawks took control early as they led by as many as eight points, 18-10, in the opening set. The Cardinals trimmed the margin to three, 19-16, but kills from Kayla Baril (Seekonk, MA/Seekonk), Rachel Jones (West Charlton, NY/Galway), Hannah Armstrong (Lansing, NY/Lansing), and Taylor Vonasek (Willington, CT/E.O. Smith) would give the Hawks the set.
           
The Cardinals led for nearly all of the second set with the Hawks falling behind by as many as seven points on two occasions. 'Wick was just a point from dropping the set, 24-21, but five straight points, including a Vonasek kill and an Armstrong ace, made it a 2-0 advantage for the Hawks.
           
The third set went down to the wire as the two teams were tied at 23-all. The Cardinals had three chances to win it but each time the Hawks fought them off with a point. At 26-26, Fisher recorded a kill followed by an ace to get right back in the match.
           
After winning the fourth set by a wide margin, the stage was set for a deciding fifth set. The Hawks would lead 5-2 before five straight Fisher points put them in front. Later, the Hawks found themselves one point from taking the match at 14-12. A Fisher kill and then three straight hitting errors, capped by a Cardinal block, ended the match with Fisher taking it, 3-2.
           
Baril and Armstrong each had double-doubles for the Hawks. Baril registered 14 kills and 16 digs with Armstrong adding 14 kills and 15 digs. Jamie Reidy (Elmira, NY/Horseheads) also picked up a double-double with 19 digs and 19 assists.
           
Ashley Werner (Saugerties, NY/Saugerties) had a team-high of 26 digs. Quincy Kinzel (Scotia, NY/Guilderland) had 21 assists, Vonasek finished with eight kills, and Jones added six kills and seven digs.
           
The Hawks will wrap up the regular season next weekend at the Skidmore Tournament. They oppose a trio of SUNYAC teams with matches against New Paltz, Potsdam, and Geneseo.