Before they enjoyed the Labor Day sunshine, the volleyball team roared into the D’Youville College Tournament this past weekend and captured four wins, each ending with the final score 3-0. The strong weekend opener led to another win last Tuesday against D’Youville College.
The Yellowjackets easily defeated Medaille College, 30-11, 30-16, 30-21. Junior Samantha Carr dished out 29 assists and had 13 digs. Junior Susan Johnson played well both offensively and defensively with 16 kills and nine digs. Senior Kate Czarniak and sophomore Jessica Sorrentino used their power to get seven kills each.
That night, UR repeated their success with a win against the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford with final score of 30-14, 30-20, 30-17. Carr continued her performance from the last game by grabbing 27 assists and 16 digs. Johnson, with another spectacular performance, had 23 kills and 20 digs. In addition, Czarniak had another seven kills, and also blocked Pitt-Bradford twice. Sorrentino had three kills and eight digs, and junior Andrea Wagonseller had three kills and 11 digs. Senior Haley Massa joined the gang with four powerful kills.
The next morning, Rochester cruised to a win against Hilbert College, 30-9, 30-21, 30-10. Czarniak picked up her game by getting 10 kills, seven aces. Wagonseller had four kills and aces and eight digs while Sorrentino had five kills, two aces and 14 digs. Johnson helped the pack with 14 kills and seven digs. Carr took another 21 assists and six digs.
Wagonseller was pumped up coming into the tournament. “We were excited to play our first tournament so we came out with intensity,” Wagonseller said.
UR overcame formidable opponent Keuka College, winning by a narrow margin of 30-28, 30-25, 30-23. Johnson had 23 kills and 19 digs. Carr dished out another 34 assists and defended well with 21 digs. The rest of the team contributed greatly to UR’s attack mode – Czarniak had nine kills, four aces and two digs, Sorrentino had seven kills and 11 digs, and Wagonseller had two kills and 13 digs.
The Yellowjackets struggled early but came out strong as the game wound down. “Keuka definitely gave us a run for our money, but we really stepped up,” said Johnson. “I think it is a great sign that we were able to overcome a really tough opponent this early in the season.”
“[Keuka is] a strong team that was coming off a very successful season,” Carr added. “We started off sticking right with them.”
Their success did not end there. UR swept D’Youville College, 30-11, 30-16, 30-18.
Czarniak attributes the successful start to the team’s ability to work well together. “Our defense and offense worked perfectly together, and as a result, we were able to go undefeated,” she said.
The Yellowjackets hope to build on their early success when they play at the Potsdam Tournament on Sept. 9 and Sept. 10. They will also face a rematch with Medaille College at home on Sept. 13.
Lee can be reached at alee@campustimes.org.
