POUGHKEEPSIE, New York – The Marist volleyball team bounced back today with an impressive sweep over the 5-1 Niagara Purple Eagles. In the victory,
Megan Fergus jumped up two spots on the program's all-time kills list, and is now in sole possession of sixth place. She is now neck-and-neck with teammate
Nikki DeSerpa on the list.
With the win, the Red Foxes improve to 7-11 on the season, and 5-3 in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference play. Meanwhile, the Purple Eagles fall to 6-11 overall and 5-2 in the conference.
- The Red Foxes dominated the first set all the way through. Madelyn Waumans opened the set with a kill, and then Fergus connected on two straight kills, giving Marist a lead that they would not relinquish for the entirety of the set. The Purple Eagle's would cut their deficit to just one on six different occasion, but each time the Red Foxes had an answer. Marist won the set 25-18.
- Marist didn't give Niagara a second to breathe, boarding the Purple Eagles with a 10-2 run to open the second set. Niagara couldn't seem to find an answer for Gabby Murray, as through the second set the middle blocker from Wisconsin had seven kills on a .778 hitting percentage. Murray helped lead the Red Foxes to an easy 25-15 win.
- Just like in the second set, Marist just couldn't be stopped in the third set. They opened this one with a 10-3 run this time, and Niagara just couldn't draw up anything that could stop the Red Fox offense. Whether it was Sarah Austin, Waumans, Fergus, or Murray, they had their way with just about every swing. Marist took the set 25-13, and the match 3-0.
- Fergus led the way for the Red Foxes with a match-high 15 kills, good for 5.0 kills per set. She also added 12 digs for a double-double.
- McKinley Fox played her best match of the season, tallying a double-double with a match-high 39 assists and 14 digs.
- Austin fell one kill short of a double-double, totaling nine kills and 12 digs.
- Caroline Leitch led Niagara with 11 kills. Emillie Wright added a match-high 18 digs.
- The Purple Eagles did not have a single block in the match, while Marist had eight total blocks.
- As mentioned earlier, with her seventh kill of the match, Fergus moved into sixth place on the all-time kills list. She passed Courtney Shaw and former teammate Kelsey Ediger along the way.
- Murray's 10 kills matched-her career-high, and her .714 hitting percentage was the highest percentage any Red Fox has had this season with 10 or more kills.
- Fox's 39 assists matched her career-high, while the 14 digs were good for a new-career high. The double-double was the second of her career.
The Red Foxes have the week off, and will return to action next Saturday, October 19 against the Iona Gaels. First serve will be at 5 p.m.
