Nov. 2, 2008

Final Stats

POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. - In a match with key postseason implications, the Marist volleyball team fell at the McCann Center to Iona 3-1 (28-30, 25-19, 23-25, 21-25) on Sunday afternoon. Both teams are now tied for fourth place in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference with 8-6 records. Junior outside hitter Alexandra Schultze (Austin, Texas) led all players with 19 kills.

Sophomore Lindsey Schmid (Austin, Texas) set a new career-high with 16 kills on Sunday and hit .429 for the match. Dawn Jan (Belleville, N.J.) each had double-doubles. Foss had 14 kills and 11 digs while Jan had 53 assists and 11 digs. Schmid and Kayla Burton (Kissimmee, Fla.) each had five blocks for the Red Foxes.

The first set between the Gaels and Red Foxes was the most hotly contested of the match, featuring 17 ties and four lead changes. Iona opened the set with a 6-3 lead powered by kills from Colleen Genett and Sarah Wiener. Trailing 8-5, a Schultze kill sparked a 4-0 run for Marist that gave the Red Foxes a 9-8 lead. Iona quickly tied the set at 9-9 with a Genett kill. With the set tied 14-14, Schmid put down a kill to give Marist a 15-14 lead. Another Schmid kill and a Foss service ace put the Red Foxes up three, 17-14, Marist's largest lead of the set.

Iona (16-10, 8-6 MAAC) bounced back with a 5-2 run to tie the set at 19-19. The Gaels had two set points at 24-22, but kills by Foss and Schmid tied the set at 24-24. Marist, then, had a chance to put the set away when a Schmid kill gave the Red Foxes a 25-24 lead. The Gaels tied the set 25-25 with a Rachelle Wilson kill. Iona went ahead 29-28 on a Marist error, then took the set 30-28 on a Wiener kill.

Marist (13-14, 8-6 MAAC) and Iona traded points to start the second set, playing to an 8-8 tie. The Red Foxes took a 10-8 lead with a Burton solo block and Jan service ace. Marist grew the lead to five at 19-14 on a Schmid kill and subsequent service ace. The offense for the Red Foxes hit .312 in the set and that powered Marist to a 25-19 win in the second set to tie the match at 1-1.

The Gaels took an early 3-0 lead in the third set, helped by a block by Wiener and Genett and a Rachel Whitten service ace. Iona lengthened the lead to five at 12-7 with a Kendall Paulus kill. Schultze responded with a kill to get Marist within four. The Red Foxes then ran off three more points off of Schmid's serve to get within a point at 12-11. Iona, though, would not back down and went ahead by five, 20-15, on a Wilson kill. Schmid and Kelsey Schaefer (Maria Stein, Ohio) combined for a block to get within four at 20-16. The Red Foxes then went on a 5-0 run on the serve of Amber Lopez (Perrysburg, Ohio) to take the lead 21-20. Iona responded with a 3-0 run to go ahead 23-21, and wound up winning the set 25-23 on a Wiener kill.

Marist came out on fire to start the fourth set, taking an 8-3 lead highlighted by two Schultze kills and aces from Jan and Cassie Campbell (Canton, Ohio). Iona, though, would not be deterred. The Gaels went on a 9-4 run to tie the set at 12-12. The two teams traded points until Genett and Wiener had back-to-back kills to put Iona ahead 19-17. The Gaels took the set 25-21 and the match 3-1.

Iona outhit Marist .261-.235 but the Red Foxes held the advantage in both digs and blocks. Marist held a 67-63 edge in digs and a 10-5 advantage in blocks. Wiener led the Gaels with 15 kills and hit. 371 as Genett had 14 kills and hit a match-high .522. Libero Allison Nieters led all players with 22 digs as setter Alyssa Erickson had 48 assists.

The Red Foxes will go on the road on Saturday, November 8 to take on Fairfield. First serve at Alumni Hall will be at 2 p.m.