ROCHESTER, NY – The RIT (17-9, 5-2 Liberty League) women's volleyball team defeated Liberty League leaders, Clarkson University (21-4, 6-1 Liberty League) on Senior Day from Clark Gym on Saturday afternoon. With the win, the Tigers finish third in the Liberty League standings.
Prior to the match, RIT honored the class of 2020,
Shelby Doheny (Moreau, NY/South Glens Falls),
Maria Simonetti (Rochester, NY/Our Lady of Mercy) and
Kelly Waters (Burnt Hills, NY/Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake).
"We are really proud of how we competed against a very good Clarkson team," said RIT head coach
Jim Lodes. "The team had great energy, focus and discipline. We needed that type of effort when playing such a quality opponent. It was also an awesome match to experience on senior night. It was a fun atmosphere. The leadership and work ethic that the seniors provide is so valuable and has greatly contributed to the success that we have been able to enjoy during their careers."
RIT had 64 kills, hitting .220 as a team. The Tigers finished with 82 digs, 18 blocks and had 61 assists.
Katie Hobler (Rochester, NY/Our Lady of Mercy) led RIT with 20 kills and eight digs.
Taylor Higgins (Peru, NY/Peru) finished with 18 kills and 18 digs, while
Sasha Mekker (Syracuse, NY/West Genesee) handed out 49 assists and 20 digs.
Joelle Marston (Roxbury, NJ/Roxbury) had 15 kills and
Maria Simonetti (Rochester, NY/Our Lady of Mercy) tallied 17 digs.
Maddie Bredehoeft was one of four Golden Knights in double figures in kills with 15. Gillian Kurtic added 14 kills, while Rachel Reusch finished with 13 kills. Isabelle Crow had 46 assists, and Kate Isaksen led Clarkson with 28 digs.
After dropping the first set, RIT rallied in the second set, taking a 24-23 lead on an attack error by the Golden Knights, and won it on a
Joelle Marston (Roxbury, NJ/Roxbury) kill to even the match at one set apiece. The Tigers had 14 kills in the second set, hitting .237.
Hobler led RIT with nine kills through two sets, while Higgins and Marston each had seven. Kurtic led Clarkson with eight kills through two sets as the Golden Knights had 13 kills and hit .087 as a team in the second set.
RIT jumped out to a 5-0 lead early in set three on kills from Hobler and Marston and a series of attack errors by Clarkson. A Golden Knights service error made it 7-2 Tigers, while a
Maria Simonetti (Rochester, NY/Our Lady of Mercy) service ace and a Higgins kill increased the RIT lead to 9-2.
The Tigers continued to pressure Clarkson, taking a 19-9 lead on the strength of a 5-point run. Higgins, Waters and Hobler (3) each had kills in the run. Clarkson cut the lead to 24-18, but a Waters kill gave the Tigers the 25-18 win.
Clarkson ran off four straight points in set four, taking a 5-4 lead on a RIT attack error, extending its lead to 9-5 on a Bredehoeft kill. Clarkson slowly built its lead, eventually winning the set 25-14 to force a fifth and deciding set.
RIT jumped out to a 4-2 lead in the fifth set, increasing the lead to 5-2 on a Mekker service ace. Hobler gave the Tigers a 6-2 lead on her kill, and Marston made it 8-3 RIT on her kill off an assist from Simonetti.
A RIT attack error cut the Tigers lead to 11-8, and a Kristin Werdine kill made it 12-9 RIT. Hobler sealed the win in the deciding set with her kill from Mekker.
With the win, RIT has now won two straight matches over Clarkson, including last season's Liberty League Championship.
RIT closes out the regular season next weekend hosting the New York State Challenge. The Tigers play NYU at 8 p.m. on Friday and Montclair State and SUNY Cortland Saturday.
