ST. DAVIDS, Pa. (October 27, 2017)  – Sophomore Taleen Mitchell tallied 11 kills and classmate Shelby Stewart filled the stat sheet with six kills, five blocks and four aces as the Stevens Institute of Technology women's volleyball team defeated Ithaca College 3-1 (25-20, 16-25, 31-29, 25-20) Friday for its sixth straight victory.

Sophomore Sara Hain added five kills and five blocks for the Ducks, who improved to 23-6. Ithaca was ranked second in the recently released New York Region rankings, while Stevens was in fourth.

Ithaca's Joelle Goldstein led all players with 15 kills. The loss snapped Ithaca's three-game winning streak and dropped the Bombers to 18-7.

Volleys and Points

• An Emily Singleton kill opened the scoring.
• A tightly-contested opening set, Ithaca opened up a five-point advantage at 13-8.
• A 6-1 run tied the set at 15. A Hain kill began the run and three consecutive Ithaca errors concluded it. Mitchell notched back-to-back aces in-between.
• Ithaca opened a pair of two-point leads before Stevens reeled off seven straight points to to reach set point. 
• The Bombers were again plagued by errors, making a pair during the run, but Singleton and Mitchell combined for four kills to spark the offense.
• Singleton's fifth kill of the frame closed out the first set.
• Ithaca pulled ahead early in the second stanza, scoring four of the first six points of the set.
• The Bombers opened an eight-point advantage at 12-4 and saw its lead swell to 10 before the Ducks responded.
• Sophomore Casey King paired with Hain to block an Amanda Cerruti attack to start a Stevens run.
• Stevens would close to within six, but a Goldstein kill and an ace by Tara Stillwell reclaimed an eight-point lead for Ithaca.
• Reagan Stone converted a Caitlyn Floyd set to close the second set and draw the match even at one.
• After the teams alternated the first 10 points of the third set, Ithaca scored three straight points to open a 7-5 lead.
• The Bombers would slowly grow their lead to five before scoring five straight points to take a commanding 20-10 lead.
• Mitchell would convert a Julie Greco set and freshman Jillian Roumbanis followed with an ace to briefly halt the Ithaca offense. Kills by Goldstein and Caroline Gerulskis helped push Ithaca's lead to 23-16. 
• A King set brought new life to Stevens at 23-17 and the Ducks reeled off seven straight points to tie the set. Stevens recorded four blocks during the tying stretch.
• Once the set became tied, Stevens fought off three set points before running off three straight points to close the frame. A Kayla Gromen service error began the run, a Hain kill brought set point and a block assist by King and Hain gave the Ducks a 2-1 lead in the match,
• Stevens pulled ahead in the final set, turning a 5-3 deficit into a 13-5 advantage with a 10-0 run. It was again the combination of strong play in the serve-receive game and at the net that sparked Stevens.
• Stevens recorded four aces during the key stretch to go along with one block. Ithaca also committed two additional attack errors and a blocking error to help spark the Stevens offense.
• After Stewart's ace opened a 13-5 lead, the Bombers slowly crept back into the match, closing to within four at 22-18 and 23-19, but a Mitchell kill ended the Ithaca threat and brought Stevens to match point.

Match Point

• Sara Hain's second kill of the set closed the match.

Inside the Numbers

• The 14 aces and 12 blocks each marked season highs for Stevens
• Despite the final score, Ithaca outhit Stevens, .172-.161
• Ithaca's Caitlyn Floyd led all players with 47 assists. Julie Greco led Stevens with 32. It was Greco's 15th match with 30 or more helpers.
• The teams combined for 104 digs. Senior libero Sydni Horner led all players with 15.
• Greco and Goldstein each tallied double-doubles.
• Stewart's four aces set a new career best for the sophomore middle blocker.
• Six different players recorded aces for Stevens.
• The matchup was a rematch of the 2016 Empire 8 Conference championship at Canavan Arena, which was won by Ithaca.
• Stevens won the third set after coming back from nine and 10-point disadvantages. The 31 points scored marked the highest single-set total of the season.

Coach Speak

• "The fight that we had tonight against a tough and powerful Ithaca team was nothing short of incredible."
• "To be down the way we were in the third set and not give up is a testament to our mental toughness and how good we truly are."
• "We were able to take the wind out of their sails and ride that wave through the end of the match."

Unsung Heroes

• "Tonight was a complete team effort."
• "We ended with 12 team blocks and that's what sparked the comeback in the third."
• "Shelby's serving was amazing and gave us nice padding in the fourth to feel comfortable."
• "To end the match, we were clicking from top to bottom and that's a good feeling going into another tough day tomorrow."

Up Next

• Stevens takes on No. 6 Carnegie Mellon University and Eastern University Saturday. The matches mark the close of the regular season.
• Live stats and video available on StevensDucks.com.

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