SYRACUSE, N.Y. –Led by a balanced offensive attack, Colgate rallied for a 3-1 (2-25, 25-18, 25-17, 25-15) victory over rival Cornell in the Otto Invitational Saturday at the Syracuse Women's Gym.
 
Senior Diane Seely and sophomore Kathleen Harris recorded 10 kills each to highlight a balanced Colgate attack that saw five players tally eight or more spikes in the match. Senior Kenzie Hume chipped in nine kills while senior Mari Faines and junior Katie Fauntleroy pitched in eight apiece to highlight a Raiders lineup that combined for 45 kills and a .258 hitting percentage.
 
Freshman Molly Smith dished out 21 assists and junior Jackie Macy added 19. Freshman Elena Simpson tallied a team-best 15 digs while Harris joined her in double figures with 10 as she finished with a double-double.
 
Maddy Sroufe and Emily Wemhoff notched 11 kills apiece for Cornell. Alyssa Phelps led all players with 30 assists while Natasha Rowland recorded a match-high 17 digs to led three Big Red players with double-digit digs.
 
Bottom Line
Colgate 3, Cornell 1 (20-25, 25-18, 25-17, 25-15)
 
Won-Lost Records
- Colgate evened its season mark at 4-4.
- Cornell slipped to 2-5 with the setback.
 
How It Happened
- With the score tied at 7-all early in the first set, Cornell used an 11-4 spurt to build an 18-11 margin. Colgate responded with seven of the next nine points to pull within two, 20-18, but the Big Red closed the frame on a 5-2 run to take the set, 25-20.
- Colgate battled back to take the second set, 25-18, using a 9-3 spurt to break open a 16-15 frame and knot the match at 1-1.
- The Raiders carried the momentum of their second set victory into the third frame, never trailing as it opened with five of the first six points of the set on its way to a 25-17 triumph and a 2-1 advantage.
- Deadlocked at 13-all in the fourth set, Colgate closed out the frame in convincing fashion, tallying 12 of the last 14 points of the stanza for a decisive 25-15 decision and the match.
 
Inside the Boxscore
- The match featured a total of 13 ties and seven lead changes. The second set was the most closely contested, with five ties and four lead changes in the frame.
- Seven of Colgate's 17 attack errors came in the first set as the Raiders combined to hit .285 (38-10-98) over the final three sets.
- Colgate had three players post an attack percentage of .333 or higher in the match (Seely (10-2-24-.333), Hume (9-2-16-.438), and Faines (8-2-19-.316)).  
- Hume and Seely both finished with four total blocks each with Hume posting two of the Raiders' three solo blocks in the match.  
 
Quotable
Colgate Head Coach Ryan Baker (on team's performance)
"I though we displayed great composure tonight after losing the first set. Our overall intensity and effort made the difference for us. What's hard to see in the box score is how great we served tonight. I thought both setters did a great job tonight running our offense. They made great decisions, which generated the kind of production we need from our hitters."
 
Up Next
- Both teams return to action Sunday in the Otto Invitational.
- Colgate takes on host Syracuse at 12:30 p.m. and Albany at 4:30 p.m. while Cornell faces the Great Danes at 10 a.m. and the Orange at 6:30 p.m.