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#19 Cortland Sweeps Clarkson in Showdown of Undefeated Teams
CORTLAND, N.Y. – The nationally 19th-ranked Cortland
women's volleyball team rallied from a 24-20 deficit to win the
opening set and went on to sweep visiting Clarkson, 31-29, 25-16,
25-9, in a battle of undefeated teams. The match was played in
front a boisterous crowd of approximately 500 fans at Corey
Gymnasium.
The Red Dragons, now 18-0, and the Golden Knights, now 17-1,
entered the evening as two of only seven undefeated teams
nationally in Division III along with Springfield (MA), Calvin
(MI), Washington (MO), McMurry (TX) and Pine Manor (MA).
Senior Ashley
Coyle (Mt. Hope/Minisink Valley) led Cortland with 11
kills and also finished with six digs and two blocks. Senior
Sheena
Asibey (Brentwood) totaled nine kills and three blocks
and senior Kaitlyn
Cooper (Webster/Webster Schroeder) added six kills and a
team-high five blocks.
Also for the Red Dragons, sophomore Aubrey
Barrett (Liverpool) registered five kills, four blocks
and nine digs and junior Kristen
Guercio (Smithtown/Smithtown East) had 30 assists and six
digs. Junior Katie
Wick (Cortland/Homer) and senior Jaclyn
Lawrence (Marilla/Iroquois Central) finished with 11 and
10 digs, respectively.
Senior Sara Artus (St. Regis Falls) led Clarkson with 13 kills.
Sophomore Lani Durio (Austin, TX/Lake Travis) recorded 25 assists
and 10 digs and sophomore Erika Chin (Katy, TX/Cinco Ranch) added
15 digs and two aces.
The first set featured 14 ties. Clarkson used a 5-1 run, including
three Artus kills, to turn a 19-19 tie into a 24-20 lead. Cortland,
however, fought off four straight Clarkson set points on a service
error, a Wick ace, a combined block by Coyle and Cooper, and a
Cooper kill following a long rally to tie the set at 24-24.
With Cortland up 25-24, Clarkson staved off the first of what
ended up being four Cortland set points. The Golden Knights then
took a 29-28 lead on a Cortland attack that went wide, but the Red
Dragons scored the next three points on Clarkson misplays to win
the set.
The second set initially shaped up like the first one as the teams
were tied six times, the last at 10-10. Cortland tallied three
straight points on a Wick kill, a Barrett ace and a Cooper kill to
go up 13-10. With the score 14-12, Cortland mounted a 7-0 rally to
take control. Coyle recorded two kills during that run.
Cortland dominated the third set from the start. The Red Dragons
opened a 5-0 lead and went on an 8-2 run to extend a 6-1 advantage
to 14-3. With the score 21-9, Cortland finished off the match with
four straight points, two on Asibey kills.
Cortland honored seniors Asibey, Cooper and Lawrence prior to
their final regular-season home match. Coyle is a senior
academically but still has a year of eligibility remaining that she
plans to use next season.
Cortland will compete at the Stevens Institute of Technology
(N.J.) Invitational on Friday and Saturday. Among Cortland's four
opponents in the tournament will be nationally 18th-ranked UMass
Boston.
