POUGHKEEPSIE, New York - The Marist volleyball team fell to Albany in four sets in a non-conference matchup on Tuesday evening in the team's home opener at McCann Arena.
 
After losing the first two sets, Marist captured the third set 25-19 before dropping set four and losing the match 3-1.
 
With the loss, the Red Foxes fell to 1-3 on the season, while the Great Danes improved to 2-2.

 

SUMMARY

• Errors early in the contest hurt the Red Foxes as they trailed Albany in the first set 7-2. Oren Abutbul collected five kills along the way, helping Albany get out to a 15-9 lead later in the set.
• Marist did not quit, as back-to-back kills from Sasha van der Merwe started a 5-0 run for the Red Foxes, cutting Albany's lead down to 15-14.  Despite a valiant effort, Marist dropped the first set to 25-20.
• Errors continued to hurt Marist in the second set, allowing Albany to jump out to a 7-3 lead.  Kills from Vanessa Zolg and van der Merwe brought the Red Foxes within three, but the Great Danes responded with a 5-0 run to increase their lead to eight.  The Red Foxes dropped the second set 25-18, ending with back-to-back kills by the Great Danes.
• Albany's momentum continued into the third set as the Great Danes jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead.  Marist responded quickly with a 4-0 run of their own, including two service aces from Zolg.  The Red Foxes continued to dominate the third set as they scored six straight points, with each point coming from a different player, giving them a 15-9 advantage.
• The Great Danes began to surge late in the third set, cutting the Red Fox lead down to just two points.  Marist held strong, as two kills from Madelyn Waumans and an ace from van der Merwe won the third set for the Red Foxes 25-19.
• The teams were evenly matched in the fourth set as they traded points throughout the set.  Marist led 14-13, but a 5-0 Albany run gave the Great Danes an 18-14 advantage late in the set.  The run proved to be too much for the Red Foxes, as they ultimately fell 25-17 in the fourth set.

 

STATS/NOTES

• Gabriella Heimbauer and van der Merwe led the Red Foxes with twelve kills each.
• McKinley Fox totaled 29 assists in the loss.  She also had 11 digs, collecting her second double-double of the season.
• Morgan Owens continued her stellar play, leading the game with 19 digs.
• Vanessa Zolg had a game-high three service aces and a team-high four total blocks.
• Jillian Hanna collected the first two kills of her career in the match.
• Kamara Kelly led the Great Danes with 11 kills.
• Albany outhit Marist, .190-.107.

 

UP NEXT

The Red Foxes will head to Cambridge, MA next weekend for the Harvard Invitational hosted by Harvard University.  For the first game of the tournament, Marist will take on host Harvard on Friday, September 3 at 7 p.m.