ONEONTA, NY – The Hartwick volleyball team split a pair of matches to end the regular season on Saturday, defeating Baruch by a 3-1 score before dropping a five-set decision to the host Red Dragons. The Hawks are now 18-3 on the year.
Match One vs. Baruch (3-1; 25-16, 25-14, 23-25, 25-17)
● Hartwick took a big 10-3 lead early in set one and never looked back, eventually leading 18-9 before winning by that nine-point margin.
● The Hawks again took a 10-3 lead in set two, and again expanded that out, this time to 10-8 before again winning by that margin.
● Baruch turned the tables in set three, winning seven of the first eight points. The Hawks gradually closed the gap to three at 18-15 and then one at 23-22 before the Bearcats won two of the final three points to stave off the match loss.
● An even start to the fourth set gave way to a 15-8 Hartwick lead, as they would maintain a sizable lead through the remainder of the match-clinching set.
● Staecia Silofau (Kapolei, HI/Maryknoll) led the Hawks with 15 kills on an efficient .387 hitting percentage. Three other Hawks had attack percentages over .300 as well: Myla Dobson (Burnt Hills, NY/Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake), at 10 kills on .304, Toria Betelak (North Syracuse, NY/Liverpool), at nine kills on .368, and Kiera Walsh (Burnt Hills, NY/Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake), at seven kills on a .375.
● Kayley Ericson (Franklin, CT/Norwich Free Academy) and Braelyn Hornick (Candor, NY/Candor) split setting duties, with 19 and 22 kills, respectively.
● Silofau led all players with 14 digs, while Hornick was not far behind her at 12.
Match Two vs. Oneonta (2-3; 25-18, 25-23, 24-26, 27-29, 13-15)
● The Hawks jumped out to a 7-2 lead in set one and never really looked back in the only semi-blowout set of the match.
● Set two was tight throughout, and after leading 24-21, 'Wick finally put the set away on a Dobson kill.
● Oneonta came back from down 23-18 in set three to take a 24-23 lead, and after one more Hartwick point claimed the set.
● 'Wick had two match points in set four, but could not pull away from the Red Dragons, who knotted the match up on a Caitlin Christie kill.
● After Oneonta went up 4-1 in set five, the Hawks ran off six straight points to take a 7-4 lead. The Red Dragons came storming back, though, and a tight end-match eventually saw Ashanti Davis put the day away with a kill.
● Betelak tied for the match high with 15 kills on a .348 attack percentage, while Colette Maloney (Williston Park, NY/Mineola) and Silofau had 13 kills apiece. Dobson had 11 kills on a .348 hitting percentage.
● Ericson and Hornick again split setting duties, with 22 and 26 assists, respectively.
● Five Hawks were in double digits in digs: Kaileigh Brandow (Manorville, NY/Eastport South Manor) at 20, Sarah Petz (Webster, NY/Webster Thomas) at 16, Hornick and Silofau at 14 each, and Maloney at 12. Silofau also put up a career-high five aces.
The Hawks are back at it again on Friday, November 5, when they take on third-seeded Nazareth in the Empire 8 Semifinals. The match will be played on the campus of top seed St. John Fisher at 7:30 p.m.
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