MSMC Drops Last Two Matches of Red Dragon Invitational

ONEONTA – The Mount Saint Mary College women’s volleyball team dropped their final two games of the Red Dragon Invitational on Saturday.

In the first of two matches on the day, Mount Saint Mary played Western New England in their second game of the Red Dragon Invitational. The Knights needed a bounce-back game after losing in three sets the day prior. The Mount was off to a good start thanks to a few mishaps from the Golden Bears. Mount Saint Mary was getting a lot of help from their players up front as an Erin Lema kill provided the Knights with a 10-8 lead. Western New England was on a little bit of a run, taking the lead, but the Knights were determined to stay in it. The teams exchanged blows until the Golden Bears caught fire and eventually won the set 25-19, with a 7-3 run to finish off the set.

Set number two saw Mount Saint Mary go down a few points early, then go on a 5-1 run capped off by a Julianna Simone kill. A small streak from the Golden Bears was counteracted by the Knights thanks to some great defensive plays. Western New England began to pull away right after scoring five unanswered and taking an 18-10 lead. The Mount applied some pressure on the Golden Bears, but the deficit was too big as Western New England secured the second set 25-17.

The Golden Bears had a jump start to begin set number three building a 10-3 lead fast. The Knights were caught off guard and never really recovered. They were able to come to within five points as Isabella Montemagno served an ace to make the score 13-8. Western New England finished off the final set on a 12-1 run, concluding the set and winning the match 3-0.

With little rest, Mount Saint Mary was back on the floor for some more action against Utica College. The Knights came into the match with a clear conscience as a couple of kills from Jonaiya Williams kept them to within a point. Fatigue was kicking in as some errors and the inability to return serves gave Utica a 13-6 lead. The Mount lost traction as Utica went on an 11-2 run, winning the first set 25-10.

Utica took the lead from the jump and never handed it over. Mount Saint Mary fought hard as they brought the set to within two after Sofia Fredericks assisted an Erin Lema kill. Just like the first set, Utica was able to dominate the second half of the set scoring 12 of the last 17 points and winning the set 25-16.

The third set did not start off well for the Knights as they surrendered the first four points.

They would rally back with a 6-1 run capped off by an Isabella Israel ace to give them a 6-5 lead. The set went back and forth as Mount Saint Mary showed some heart to take at least one set home with them. Tied at 16 apiece, the Knights would surrender five straight aces that would eventually be too much to overcome as Utica won the third and final set 25-17, and the match 3-0.