MEDFORD, MA – After a Friday evening visit to Wesleyan, Susquehanna Volleyball continued their New England trek to Tufts University Saturday for a pair of matches, starting with a 3-0 win over RIT. They then continued their stretch of games against ranked opponents against host and 22-ranked Tufts where they lost 3-0 in tough-fought sets, marking their fifth matchup with a top-25 team in the last seven matches.
Saturday's contests ended a month-long stretch for the River Hawks competing in weekend tournaments that started with their own River Hawk Classic (three matches), the Washington and Lee Invitational (four matches), and the Ithaca College Invitational (three matches), with just one standalone matchup wedged in the middle against #11 NYU. Susquehanna heads into next weekend's Landmark matchups at home against Lycoming and defending NCAA national champion #1 Juniata with a 4-10 record. Both games will be streamed live exclusively through Flo Sports.
Susquehanna 3, RIT 0
Susquehanna took on RIT to begin their day and swiftly fell behind 11-9 to begin the first set. After a quick timeout from head coach Kuuipo Tom, the River Hawks regrouped and rattled off three consecutive points to take the lead. The next few points were back-and-forth until RIT was able to pull ahead 15-14. SU then scored eight straight points, outscoring RIT 11-1 in the final 12 points. This would become a familiar theme throughout the rest of the match, as Susquehanna outscored RIT 10-5 in the final 15 points of sets two and three en route to final scores of 25-22 and 28-26.
The 3-0 sweep contained phenomenal efforts from Keira Roach and Regan Kane as both collected 3 service aces, with the former setting a season-best mark and the ladder setting a career-best mark. Emily Kowalski also recorded a career-high in kills with 17, while Sami Kline totaled a career-best five total blocks.
Tufts 3, Susquehanna 0
The River Hawks then took on tournament co-hosts Tufts University, as they looked to defeat a ranked opponent for the first time this season. Spirits were high as Susquehanna jumped out to a 2-1 lead, before surrendering seven consecutive points to the hosts. Once again, a timeout by Coach Tom proved highly successful, as the River Hawks collected five of their own consecutive points, before ultimately losing the first set 25-20. Set two began with a commanding 11-4 lead in favor of SU, but multiple service aces from the Jumbos allowed the score to tighten, with the River Hawks eventually dropping the set 25-23. Set three was a complete reverse, as Tufts jumped out to a quick 10-3 lead before SU closed the gap, capitalizing on errors from the hosts. Ultimately it was not to be, as Tufts completed the sweep with a 25-20 victory.
Junior Ryan Rorls contributed a team-best 9 kills for Susquehanna, as fellow junior Keira Roach secured 26 assists against the Jumbos. Roach also led the team in digs with 14, followed closely by Valerie Stoltz with 10 and Jessica Sack with 7.
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