Marist Opens Up Conference Play with a Win

POUGHKEEPSIE – Marist volleyball opened up Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference play, defeating Canisius 3-1 at McCann Arena. The Red Foxes are now 1-0 in conference play and 4-7 overall.

Canisius looked to have the advantage early in the first set. Although their lead didn’t extend past two points, the Golden Griffins never relinquished the lead in the first half of the set. After the media timeout, Marist fought back to take its first lead of the game when a block by sophomore Chidera Udeh and junior Nikki DeSerpa gave the Red Foxes a 17-16 advantage. From there, Marist went on a 7-3 run to extend their lead to 24-19. Despite a late push by Canisius, the set ended on a service error by Melina Woods, giving the Red Foxes a 25-21 victory. DeSerpa led Marist with three kills in the set.

The Red Foxes’ momentum carried over into the second set, scoring five of the first seven points. Marist held the lead throughout the entire set, until three straight Golden Griffin points, capped by a kill from Camila Vazquez, evened up the score at 20. After exchanging three points, bringing the score to 23-23, a block from Udeh and sophomore Sarah Austin gave the Red Foxes the lead. Junior Stephanie Stone clinched the victory with a beautiful kill, giving Marist a 25-23 win in set two. DeSerpa again led Marist in kills with six, while junior Megan Fergus added five.

Canisius came storming out of the gate early in set three, getting out to a 15-8 lead thanks to three straight kills from Gabrielle Darnaby. Marist gained some momentum back after back-to-back service aces from senior Taylor van der Biezen brought the Red Foxes to within three points. However, after a 6-1 run, Canisius extended its lead to 21-13, and carried that momentum to a 25-19 victory in set 3.

The Red foxes and Golden Griffins went back and forth early on in set four. After Darnaby had a kill to bring Canisius within one, the Red Foxes went on a 5-1 run, highlighted by a monster kill from senior Lauren Waide, to take a 14-10 lead. The four-point lead would be all Marist needed, as the Golden Griffins were never able to close the gap to get within one point. The Red Foxes went on to win set four 25-19, clinching a 3-1 match victory.