OSWEGO, N.Y. – The Wheaton College (Mass.) women's volleyball team received double-digit kills from three different players for the second straight match, en-route to a 3-1 (25-27, 25-23, 25-11, 25-15) victory over host Oswego State University of New York this morning at Max Ziel Gymnasium in Oswego, N.Y. during the Oswego State Invitational.
The Lyons improve to 2-0 on the season, while the Lakers fall to 0-2.
Wheaton allowed Oswego to record just one set, where it posted a positive hitting percentage in the match.
Sophomore outside hitter Sydney Lyon (Weston, Conn.) led all players with 16 points, including 12 kills on a .237 hitting mark and four aces to go with 11 digs for the Lyons. Classmate Saskia Habibe (Miami, Fla.) registered her second straight match with double-digit kills with 10 behind a .364 hitting percentage and also got down for 15 digs and up for two block assists. Sophomore outside hitter Celina Henn (Atwater, Calif.) spiked for 12 kills and added 15 digs, three aces and a block assist, while senior setter Julianna Flack (Saint Petersburg, Fla.) set for 30 assists and contributed with four kills and three aces. First year libero Jackie Hochberg (Tampa, Fla.) picked up 25 digs and fired an ace.
Senior right side hitter Olivia Bunn (Hamburg, N.Y.) and graduate student outside hitter Sydney Chiffriller (Massapequa, N.Y.) each led the Lakers with seven kills apiece, while Chiffriller also picked up nine digs. Junior right side hitter Emily Zeisler (Franklin Square, N.Y.) posted a double-double with 16 assists and 16 digs to go with a block assist.
Oswego outlasted Wheaton, 27-25, following 10 lead changes in the opening set. The Lyons held an 11-9 lead, but the Lakers shot back with eight of the next 10 points to take a 17-13 margin. Wheaton returned serve with five unanswered points, including a pair of kills from Henn and two aces from Flack, to reclaim the lead at 18-17. The Lyons were one point away from taking the initial frame at 25-24, but Oswego scored the final three points to take a 1-0 match lead.
The Lakers got out to a 10-8 lead early in the second set, before Wheaton ripped off six straight points to take a 14-8 cushion. The Lyons expanded their margin to 22-15, following a kill from sophomore middle hitter Hollis Hanson (Parker, Colo.), for Wheaton's largest advantage of the set. The Lyons stood just a point away from the end of the set again at 24-20, but Oswego showed its mettle, scoring the next three points, before Henn put a kill down for Wheaton to give the visitors the frame at 25-23 to knot the match at 1-1.
The Lyons cruised through the final two frames to claim victory in the match. Henn spiked for a pair of kills to fuel Wheaton to a 7-2 run to begin the third set. The Lyons later owned a 20-8 margin, before the Lakers scored three unanswered points to make it 20-11. Wheaton tallied the next five markers without a challenge as Henn fired a pair of aces and senior middle hitter Megan Kelleher (Wethersfield, Conn.) put down the final kill of the frame for a 25-11 count.
The Lyons looked to be comfortable with a 15-8 advantage in the fourth set, but Oswego disrupted things, scoring six of the next seven points to pull within 16-14. Wheaton regrouped and tallied nine of the final 10 points, including two kills and an ace from Lyon. Henn put away the winning point with a kill and a 25-15 final for Wheaton to take the match.
