ONEONTA, NY – Everyone in Lambros Arena on Friday night could sense what might have been the biggest win in program history coming, as the Hartwick volleyball team went up two sets to one over two-time defending Empire 8 champion St. John Fisher. It was not to be, ultimately, as the Cardinals showed why they are back-to-back titleholders and dug out a five-set (25-12, 22-25, 22-25, 25-19, 15-11) road win over the Hawks. 'Wick drops to 8-2 on the year and 0-1 in the Empire 8, while Fisher is now 10-3 overall and 2-0 in conference.
Each side's performance in the first set made it seem like the night might go by quickly, as the Cardinals cruised by via a 25-12 scoreline. The beginning of the second set saw more of the same, with Fisher commanding 7-1 and 14-8 leads. From there, however, the Hawks went on a run, eventually tying the score at 16 on an opposing attack error. The two sides went back-and-forth for a bit before Hartwick reeled off four consecutive points to put St. John Fisher at the brink with a 24-21 lead. After a one-point reprieve, Colette Maloney (Williston Park, NY/Mineola) emphatically shut the door with a Braelyn Hornick (Candor, NY/Candor)-assisted kill.
The Lambros crowd was at its peak in the third set, which saw neither team take a significant advantage for the first portion. Hartwick changed that midway through, however, stepping out to a 21-15 advantage after stringing together four-straight points. A well-timed timeout from Fisher Head Coach Kelly Greapentrog changed that, as her team put together a six-point run of its own to knot the set at 21-all. 'Wick boss Jim Clar countered with a pause of his own, and it did the trick as well. The Hawks took four of the next five points, capped by a Toria Betelak (North Syracuse, NY/Liverpool) kill for the two sets to one lead.
The Cardinals regrouped big time in between sets three and four, as they slipped easily past Hartwick in the fourth stanza. Fisher jumped out to a 23-10 set lead, and while the Hawks scored nine of the next 10 points, it was too little, too late to change the outcome. The match was headed to a decisive fifth set.
After splitting the first four points of the final set, three consecutive Gracie Jacob kills put the Cardinals ahead 5-2. In a 15-point fifth set, that little bit of separation proved too much to overcome for 'Wick. Fisher would take a 13-7 lead, and although the Hawks tightened the gap to just 13-11, they ultimately dropped the set by a 15-11 scoreline.
Maloney led all Hawks with 11 kills, notching a double-double with 12 digs as well. Staecia Silofau (Kapolei, HI/Maryknoll) had a career-high 19 digs on the evening, adding to that seven kills and three blocks. Kailee Muscarello (Sayville, NY/Sayville) tied her career high with 17 digs, as did Kaileigh Brandow (Manorville, NY/Eastport South Manor) and her 14 digs. Hornick handled the majority of the setting duties, putting up 26 assists to go with a career-high 10 digs for her first collegiate double-double.
'Wick searches again for their first conference victory of the year tomorrow, as they host Nazareth at noon.
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