WILLIAMSBURG, VA – The Iona College volleyball team battled on the final day of the Colonial Classic but came away with two tough defeats on the final day of action from Kaplan Arena. The Gaels fell in four sets to the host William & Mary Tribe, and then came up just short in five sets against the UNCG Spartans.
WILLIAM & MARY 3, Iona 1 (15-25, 15-25, 27-25, 19-25)
In the first set the Tribe jumped out to a 6-0 lead and after an Iona timeout, the damage still bled through to 12-3. Four straight points got the Gaels within six the lead swelled to double-digits at 16-6. Five straight points pulled the Maroon & Gold within five, 17-13, but the Tribe ended the match scoring five of the last six points of the set to take a lead in the match.
The second set saw more of a steady climb with William & Mary owning the momentum throughout. It was tied 6-6, but a 10-3 run made it 16-8 advantage for the home team. The eight-point lead remained the status quo till the end of the second set.
After an intermission, Iona vaulted back to life in the third set. Trailing 14-10 midway through, the Gaels battling to tie the game at 18 apiece. The score tied at 19 and 20 before the Tribe nicked a 23-20 lead. Never saying die, the Maroon & Gold battled off three match points and emerged with a 27-25 victory. Rookie
Samantha Juran and redshirt senior
Jessica Paolucci each had key aces I the comeback.
In the fourth set, the Tribe and Gaels traded points before the home-town team got a series of runs together to take a 14-10. Iona got it back to within one, 18-17, with three straight points aided by two attack errors from William & Mary. The end of the match concluded with a 25-19 final tally.
UNCG 3, IONA 2 (13-25, 17-25, 25-21, 25-21, 14-16)
Iona dropped both the first sets against the Spartans. The Gaels had a combined nine kills in those two sets and hitting percentages of -0.067 percent. In comparison, UNC Greensboro had nine kills in the first set and 13 kills in the second, hitting .368 and .135, respectively.
The Maroon & Gold had a match-high nine errors in the opening game and the Spartans catapulted to the winning start with a 10-2 run in the middle portion of the set. In the second set, UNCG took serve leading 16-15. They then rattled off six straight points, and a 22-15 lead carried them to a 25-17, two-set to none lead.
Come the next portion of the match, Iona cranked up the offense with a season-best 14 kills in the third and 15 kills in the fourth. The Gaels hit .250 in the third and .256 in the fourth. The Maroon & Gold won both sets 25-21, bringing the match to a fifth and culminating set.
They key moment in the third set came in the way of an Iona rebound. The Gaels led 15-12 when UNCG went on a five-point run to take a 17-15 lead. The Maroon & Gold didn't back down. Instead they tied the game at 17, 18, and 19 before emerging with a 21-19 edge. Kills by senior
Karla Johnson and Patsos extended the match to a fourth set.
In the fourth, the margin maintained between two and three points. Iona had jumped out to a 10-4 lead and then persisted to constantly hold off UNCG. Three times the Spartans got within two, and they even got within a single-serve trailing Iona 21-22. A Smith kill, Hannad Knier attack error and Patsos kill brought us to a fifth set.
Victory was within the grasp for the Gaels. They led 13-10 in a set to 15, but four straight points from UNCG put the Maroon & Gold down one. A service error got Iona the serve back, but Maria Esch had a kill to earn the serve back, then it was her service that led to a Maroon & Gold attacking error to end the match. Iona dropped the last set, 14-16.
NOTABLE NUGGETS
- Freshman Samantha Juran made her first two major appearances of the season on Saturday. In four sets against William & Mary, Juran had 25 assists, two service aces and 10 digs. The against UNCG, it was another double-double for the freshman with 30 assists and 11 digs. Both assists totals are the highest by an Iona player this season.
- Junior Jamie Smith's 15 kills against William & Mary is the highest by an Iona player this season. Against UNCG, sophomore Cassandra Patsos and Smith tied the second-highest total of 13. The only other game with 13 kills came earlier in the week against Seton Hall at the hands of Smith as well.
- Junior Taylor Cole had four aces against UNCG. Senior Karla Johnson had a team-leading four blocks. Cole also had a team-best 14 digs.
- Iona falls to 0-3 all-time against the Tribe. They had previously matched up in 2014 and 2015. Saturday's game was the first time the Gaels won a set. The contest with UNCG was the first between the Gaels and Spartans in their programs history.
UP NEXT
Tomorrow the Maroon & Gold return to action and face host William & Mary and UNC Greensboro t wrap up the Colonial Classic. First serve against the tribe is at 1:00 p.m. and the finale against the Spartans is set at 3:30.
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