HAMILTON – The Colgate volleyball program remains undefeated in Patriot League play with a 3-0 sweep of Bucknell on Saturday afternoon. After steady wins of 25-14 and 25-13, the Raiders overcame a six-point deficit to claim a 25-23 third set win to seal the sweep. With her team-leading 16 kills, junior outside hitter
Alli Lowe surpassed 1,000 kills in her career as the Raiders improve to 8-0 in league action.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Lowe notched her 1,000th career kill early in the match, a move that gained a 7-2 lead with a 6-1 scoring run in the opening set. A kill sent to center court by
Alex Stein lifted the Raiders to an 11-5 advantage midway through, to force Bucknell to call a timeout. Later that set freshman
Sophie Thompson came through with a strong swing bringing the Raiders to set point, before the Raiders capitalized on a long serve for a 25-14 set win.
After an opening set that included four total team blocks to Bucknell's one, the Raiders continued the strong defensive play and clean kills into the second game. With a swift swing by Thompson to the right side, Bucknell was forced to called another early timeout as Colgate led 11-3. Returning from the timeout, a stellar block by the combination of
Taylor Flaherty and Thompson continued to increase the advantage to 13-4.
Midway through Bucknell looked to pressure back with a 5-1 run narrowing Colgate's lead to 14-9. Righting the ship with a kill to the back line was Lowe, igniting a three-point run for a 17-9 edge. With another attack slicing to the floor by
Ellen Hamlin, the Raiders were brought back to a 10-point advantage at 22-12. After another big dig by Hamlin to continue play, Colgate was able to close out the set with the team's eighth block of the night by Thompson and Lowe at 25-13.
Although Bucknell claimed the opening point, the Raiders responded with three straight for an early 3-1 lead. Colgate then again had to snuff out a 3-0 Bucknell run for a 9-7 advantage with a kill by Hamlin. After having a tie game at 9s and 10s, the Raiders found themselves calling a timeout trailing 13-10. The timeout far from calmed the Bucknell drive, as its 9-1 run made it a 19-11 game looking to force extra sets.
The Raiders responded with a 3-0 run capped by Lowe's swing to narrow the game to five, and after as much as a six-point spread, came back within three at 22-19 with a quick touch by
Hailey Horn-Bostel. Tying the game at 22s was Stein, before the 7-0 scoring run was solidified by an ace by
Gabby Benck to regain the lead at 23-22. Overcoming a severe deficit in the third set, the Raiders rallied to sweep Bucknell with a third set win of 25-23.
STATISTICAL STANDOUTS
• Behind her team-leading 16-kill performance, junior outside hitter
Alli Lowe surpassed 1,000 career kills, now holding 1,013 overall. Up next, Lowe looks to join the Colgate volleyball record book, needing 1,023 to reach the top-10 in career kills.
• In her effective attack, Lowe recorded a team-high attack percentage of .424.
• A game-changing performance came by the swing of senior
Gabby Benck, as she served through Colgate's 8-0 run to close out the third set, earning a pair of aces on the Bison. It marks Benck's first multi-ace match in her career.
• For the second time in her career, freshman
Cami Carfino recorded a multi-ace match, earning two at the back line. For the sixth time in the last nine matches, Carfino also recorded double-digit digs with 10 against Bucknell.
• Defensively the Raiders were led by junior libero
Bridget Kolsky, as she notched 16 on the day. Kolsky holds double-digit digs in 17 of the seasons 20 matches.
• At the net, sophomores
Julia Kurowski and
Hailey Horn-Bostel each marked five blocks. The number is a season-high for Kurowski, matching her five against Sacred Heart (Sept. 7).
• Other notable performances came from freshman
Sophie Thompson with six kills and three blocks, as well as sophomore
Ellen Hamlin with five kills while hitting .500.
• Colgate's 8-0 start in the Patriot League is the longest since the same undefeated streak that started the 2012 Patriot League Championship campaign.
THE BOTTOM LINE
• Colgate 3, Bucknell 0 (25-14, 25-13, 25-23)
RECORD UPDATES
• Colgate improves to a 15-5 overall record, as well as a 8-0 mark in Patriot League play.
• Bucknell is now 13-7 on the season, and 2-6 in conference action.
HEAD COACH RYAN BAKER'S TAKE
"I loved how hard we played tonight. Our effort and compete level were high which is something that makes me very proud. We just keep getting better.
"
Gabby Benck's serving run in the third set was remarkable. She showed great poise and led us back against a tough Bucknell opponent."
"What a great night for
Alli Lowe. For her to have reached 1,000 kills in the middle of her junior year is remarkable. She is a tireless worker who continues to make great improvements in her game. She had some monstrous swings tonight to cap off a huge accomplishment."
UP NEXT
The Raiders begin the second rotation of Patriot League action next weekend. Colgate travels to Loyola on Oct. 25, followed by American on Oct. 26.
FOLLOW THE RAIDERS
For more information on the Colgate volleyball program, follow the Raiders on Twitter @ColgateVB and on Instagram at Colgate_VB.
