Siena Volleyball Loses Pair At Syracuse Tournament

Siena Volleyball finished their road tournaments with losses to Syracuse 3-1 (25-23, 25-16, 14-25, 31-29) and Hofstra 3-0 (25-22, 25-20, 25-12). The Saints will return home after a long road trip tomorrow.

Match One - at Syracuse L, 3-1 (25-23, 25-16, 14-25, 31-29)

Siena fell 3-1 to Syracuse in their first time playing the Orange since 2011. The last time the Saints won a set over Syracuse was 2008. The 31-29 set score is the highest set score for Siena since 2012.

The first set had four ties and two lead changes as each team battled for the advantage. Siena was down 18-10 but fought hard against the Orange to gain back the advantage. The Saints went on a 3-0 run to close the gap and trail just 22-15. That would not be the end for Siena as they kept fighting but Syracuse was able to take set one with a close 25-23 victory.The Orange used the first set to fuel them in the second set as they took a quick 3-0 lead. It would not be long before the Saints trailed just 11-9. Syracuse went on a 7-0 run to take an 18-9 lead. The Orange took the second set 25-16. Siena came back in the third set with a fire and started with a quick 6-0 lead. Syracuse attempted to cut the lead, but the Saints continued to hold off the Orange. After a 4-0 run, Siena held onto a 17-7 lead. With an impressive .429 team attack percentage in the third set the Saints won the third set 25-14. The fourth set would prove to be the biggest battle for both squads. There were 16 ties and seven lead changes in what would be the match deciding set. It was a long way until the teams got to 25-25 tie score. The Saints brought put up a strong showing against Syracuse as both battled back and forth for the two-point victory. It would be Syracuse who would come away with the 31-29 victory.Briana Flagg led the Saints with 16 kills while Sonja Vasovic and Brittney Herrick added 13 and 11 kills respectively. Herrick’s 11 kills are a career-high. Kalehua Katagiri tied her career-high 31 digs.

Match Two - vs. Hofstra L, 3-0 (25-22, 25-20, 25-12)

Siena fell in the last match of the Syracuse Tournament to Hofstra 3-0 (25-22, 25-20, 25-12). The Saints and Hofstra went back-and-forth to start off the first set. Siena held the lead for most of the first set. The Pride tied up the set 16-16 and then was able to take the advantage. Both teams battled for the advantage. It was Hofstra that took the lead and the set 25-22. Similar to the first set both teams exchanged points back-and-forth for most of the set. Hofstra would take the lead 15-11, but Siena went on a 6-1 run to tie the set 16-16. It would be a hard fought battle for both squads to take the advantage. The Pride took a 2-0 lead in the match with a 25-20 win in the second set. The third set started with the similar story to the first two. This time Hofstra took a quick 7-14 lead that the Saints could not catch up with. Fighting hard for to cut the deficit, Siena trailed 18-9. Hofstra quickly took the third set and match with a 25-12 win.Vasovic led the Saints with 11 kills, while Flagg added 10. Haley Howell notched a double-double with 24 assists and 11 digs. Katagiri led Siena with 23 digs.Siena returns to the Alumni Recreation Center for the home opener against Binghamton tomorrow.. First serve is set for 7 p.m.

-Courtesy of Siena Athletics