MICHELLE HALE
Sports Editor
Last weekend the women’s volleyball team held their annual Blue Devil Invitational. The invitational consisted of four teams: Fredonia, Ithaca, Hilbert and Canton.
On Friday, the Blue Devils lost in three sets against their rival, Ithaca College. In the second set, the Bombers were seven points behind the Blue Devils before mounting a comeback to win 25-23.
“We just let teams get on long scoring runs and that is something we need to improve upon,” said senior Jessica DiChristopher.
Sophomore Kristen Stanek led the Blue Devils on offense with nine kills while junior Sara Madison had seven kills and four service aces.
The Bombers defeated Fredonia with set scores of 25-21, 25-23 and 25-20.
On Saturday, the Blue Devils gained their confidence with a 3-0 victory against Hilbert College.
Junior Megan Collins had nine kills for Fredonia while Madison had seven kills. Senior Lauren Hokaj had 14 digs.
Set scores were 25-14, 25-8 and 25-11. After a strong defeat by the Blue Devils. they took on SUNY Canton at 12:30 p.m.
“We have a lot of talent on this team, so the players that stepped up and played where they were unfamiliar with did an excellent job,” said Hokaj.
Canton defeated the Blue Devils in three sets, just like a repeat of Friday night. Set scores were 27-25, 25-21 and 25-23. Stanek had 10 kills, and Madison and Collins both had eight kills. Stanek was also named to the All-Tournament team.
“We all need to work on having a positive mindset throughout the entire match and just being confident,” said DiChristopher.
The Blue Devils have struggled with some mid-season injuries of two starters, but are hoping for their return for SUNYAC play this upcoming weekend.
“To prepare for another SUNYAC weekend as a team we need to start working together more,” said senior Paulina Rein. “We are going to learn from the losses this past weekend and bring more intensity to practice.”
The Blue Devils travel to Potsdam to continue SUNYAC play this weekend. They will have three matches against Cortland, Brockport and Oneonta.