HOUGHTON, N.Y. – Cortland finished with a 3-0 record at the Houghton College Highlander Invitational after earning wins over Utica College and Alfred University during the second day of the five-team tournament.
Cortland extended its winning streak to seven with the victories and concludes the regular season with a 17-17 record. Cortland and Buffalo State each finished unbeaten at 3-0 at the tournament, which featured a predetermined schedule. Houghton went 1-2, Utica was 0-2 and Alfred finished 0-3.
Cortland started the day with a 25-13, 25-16, 25-15 sweep over Utica. Senior
Mary Kelly (Guilderland) led the Red Dragons with 10 kills, a .563 attack percentage and three blocks. Junior
Sydney Hayward (Trumansburg) finished with nine kills and two blocks, while junior
Kayla Pollock (Massapequa), freshman
Courtney Silberer (Centereach) and freshman
Amanda May (Baldwinsville/C.W. Baker) added five kills each. May finished with a .625 attack percentage and two blocks and Pollock had a .455 attack percentage.
Also for the Red Dragons versus the Pioneers, sophomore
Liz Roberts (Island Park/West Hempstead) recorded 32 assists, nine digs, three blocks, three kills and a .600 attack percentage. Sophomore
Melanie McGuirk (Lido Beach/Kellenberg) and freshman
Ashley Ruggiero (Smithtown/Smithtown East) amassed nine and six digs, respectively.
Cortland overcame an early deficit to beat Alfred in four sets, 23-25, 25-21, 25-10, 25-18. Kelly again led the way with 10 kills, a .526 attack percentage and three blocks. Hayward contributed nine kills, a .500 attack percentage, six blocks, six digs and four aces and Pollock put down nine kills.
Freshman
Jessie Allen (Syracuse/West Genesee) finished with six kills, a .357 attack percentage and a team-high eight blocks. Silberer added six kills and three blocks and hit at a .308 clip. Roberts totaled 42 assists, Ruggiero led the team with 14 digs, freshman
Janine Patora (Salt Point/Arlington) had 12 digs and McGuirk finished with 10 digs and four aces.
Kelly and Allen were named to the all-tournament team.
Cortland will face Buffalo State in the SUNYAC tournament quarterfinals on Friday, Nov. 7, at 3 p.m. at New Paltz, which is hosting the entire six-team league tournament Nov. 7-9.
Tournament Web Page.
