MORRISVILLE, N.Y. – The Morrisville State Women's Volleyball team walked away with a three set win in their season opener late Friday afternoon downing the visiting Pioneers from Alfred State in three sets.
Morrisville and Alfred State went toe-to-toe for the first third of the first set, but a string of solid serving from sophomore Amelia Baratier (Liverpool, N.Y.) gave the Mustangs a slight edge. The Pioneers worked their way back to 19-17, but another strong serving effort by Baratier put the Mustangs ahead by 5. Morrisville would go on to take the opening set 25-20.
The second set was much of the same, but ultimately the serving combination of freshmen Kirsten Florio (Wellsboro, Pa.) and Morgan Florio (Wellsboro, Pa.) and a momentum swinging kill by Helena Hanes (Brockport, Pa.) gave the Mustangs the edge. Morrisville rounded out the second set win on a big solo block by senior middle hitter, Lindsey Sunderlage (Kingston, Ill.).
Coach Fred Wallace tapped into his bench to start the third set, allowing his reserves to get into the action. Down 12-14, freshman Anna Salamino's (Liverpool, N.Y.) serving put Alfred State on their heels allowing Hanes and Megyan Merrill (Millport, N.Y.) to put away three big kills to give Morrisville the 15-14 advantage. The Mustangs took the final set 25-21.
Merrill led the way offensively with 12 kills. The setting combination of Hanes and Kim Dunkleman (Williamsville, N.Y.) distributed the ball well, picking up 12 and 19 assists respectively. Defensively, Morrisville picked up strong performances at the net from K. Florio and Sunderlage as each contributed a solo block. Libero, Samantha Wolf (Liverpool, N.Y.) tallied 12 digs and Merrill added 10.
The Mustangs will return to the court Saturday morning at 11 AM as they take on the Cadets from Norwich University in the first match of the day of their home tournament. Morrisville will then play in the tournament's final match on Sunday evening at 7 PM against the Oswego State Lakers.
As a reminder to fans, all tournament matches are being played at Morrisville-Eaton High School.
Morrisville State College's curricula are enriched with applied learning and pave the way for opportunity at both the Morrisville and Norwich campuses. An action-oriented, interactive learning lab, the college is a national leader in technology and has been lauded for its exemplary, innovative and effective community service programs.
The college was ranked among the Best Regional Colleges in the North by U.S. News and World Report Best Colleges 2016 issue and was also recognized in the Top Public Schools, Regional Colleges North in the 2016 Best Colleges rankings. For more information about Morrisville State College, visit www.morrisville.edu.
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