NEW ROCHELLE, NY – The Iona University Volleyball team squared off against Niagara Sunday afternoon hoping to collect their first home win of the season. The Purple Eagles looked to make that victory a difficult task, with the side victorious in three of their last four road trips.
First set
Graduate Jen Soto came storming out of the gate, with all four of Iona's opening points attributed to kills from Gael's number nine. The Phoenix, Arizona native would end the set with an outstanding eight kills, hitting .545. With
Mija Jegers notching another five kills for the Gaels and Senior
Emma Vu dishing out 11 assists, the Maroon & Gold would come out on top in the first 25-22.
Second set
Iona would find themselves down 14-21 late into in the second but thanks to a 7-1 run the game was brought within one score, 21-22 . The Maroon & Gold's run would go unrewarded, however, dropping the set 22-25.
Kenzie Wiggins and
Mija Jegers would put up big numbers in the second, with the former hitting six kills, and the Rookie tallying eight digs. Both would lead all players in their respective stats in the second set.
Third Set
With a timeout down 6-10, the Gaels would go on a 15-4 run to take their biggest lead of seven in the set. Hitting .301 as a team, the Maroon & Gold would hold their lead and take the third set 25-20.
Fourth Set
A nail-biting fourth saw the teams go into tiebreaker points. To round out the afternoon, Jen Soto finished just as strong as she started with half a dozen kills and a assisted block. Iona would win the final set 27-25, taking the 3-1 victory.
A huge win against a Niagara team that entered the match second in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference counted as the Gael's first 2024 victory at home. Four players in Maroon & Gold tallied double digit kills, while three totaled more than 10 digs.
Iona Performers
- Senior Kenzie Wiggins finished with an incredible double-double consisting of a season-high 19 kills and 13 digs. The Corpus Christi, Texas native hit .381 on the afternoon while also landing a scintillating, knuckled service ace on the way to a season-high 20.0-point night.
- Jen Soto tied her Senior teammate in leading all players with a season-high19 kills, while also throwing in two assisted blocks on her very own season high 20.0-point night. The Phoenix, AZ native has under 30 points to go until she reaches one thousand career points in Maroon & Gold.
- Emma Vu enabled high-scoring nights from her attackers by dishing out 34 assists, a mark that led all players on court and set a personal season-high. The Senior completed a double-double with 11 digs and threw in another season high of four kills and two service aces in a wonderful outing.
- Rookie Mija Jegers notched the third double-double tallied by Gaels' players, striking 10 kills and leading all players on the court with an outstanding 20 digs. A service ace and an assisted block would account for an 11.5-point afternoon.
- Grace Ehler was the fourth Gael to total double-digit points, with 11 kills, an ace, and an assisted block to bring her points total to 12.5.
- Jordan Eder delivered 20 assists in the game while tallying six digs.
- Buse Tinaz would tie for most assisted blocks across all players in the match with four.
The Opponent
- Paisley Ka'ahanui tallied a double-double with 23 assists and a dozen digs.
- Kylie Blessing would also take home a double-double, with 21 assists and 11 digs.
Up next
The Maroon & Gold take a trip to New Jersey next weekend as they face off against Rider on Saturday at noon and Saint Peter's 1:00 p.m. on Sunday.
