NEW ROCHELLE, NY – The Iona University volleyball team faced off against the Canisius Griffins and fell in four sets. After dropping the first two sets, the Gaels battled back to take the third. In the fourth, a tightly contested set saw a late rally from the Griffins that secured the match victory for Canisius.

THE RUNDOWN: Canisius: 3, IOna: 1

SET 1: The Maroon and Gold got on the board with a kill from junior Ezzie Thompson. The opening set started as a close battle until the Griffins scored five unanswered points to take a five-point lead and force Iona to call an early timeout. Canisius continued to build momentum out of the break, outscoring the Gaels by four to extend their lead to eight. Iona responded with five unanswered points, capped off by a Canisius attack error, cutting the deficit to three. Despite the late push, the Gaels were unable to recover after an 8-1 run put the Griffins at set point. Iona scored three straight to stay alive, but Canisius ultimately took the first set 25-17.

SET 2: Thompson once again opened the scoring for Iona with a kill, but Canisius responded with five unanswered to take a four-point advantage. The Gaels answered with three straight to cut the deficit to one. The set stayed close until Iona capitalized on a pair of Griffin errors and tied the score at 12. Canisius responded with a 5-0 run to regain control, and that stretch proved decisive as Iona was unable to close the gap. The Griffins claimed the second set 25-21.

SET 3: Freshman Julia Leonardo got the third set started for Iona with a kill, and sophomore Kari Smith followed with another to help the Gaels take an early three-point lead. Canisius battled back to tie the score at seven, but Iona answered with a 5-0 run capped by a Griffin setting error to go up by five. The teams traded points until Canisius put together a six-point run to even the score at 16. Smith's kill regained the lead for the Gaels, who controlled the rest of the set and closed it out 25-18 to stay alive.

SET 4: Canisius came out strong, jumping to a four-point lead early. The Gaels answered quickly, narrowing the gap to two before both sides traded points as the set neared the media timeout. Kills from senior Caleigh Schroeder, Leonardo, and junior Buse Tinaz brought the score even at 13. The set stayed tight down the stretch, but a late 4-1 Canisius run sealed the frame 25-22 and secured the match for the Griffins.

IONA Performers

• Leonardo led the offense in kills with 14. Smith and Thompson both tallied ten kills. 
• Schroeder led the team in assists with 33. 
• Avery Gaume, junior Sanem Bas, Smith, and Schroeder all with double-digit digs. 
• Tinaz had seven blocks total on the day. 

THE OPPONENT

• Julia Lenik led the attack with 17 kills. Bella Mosquera with 12 kills. 
• Ella Bourque tallied a team high 47 assists. 
• Kalia Reisma and Mosquera had five blocks.  

UP NEXT

The Maroon and Gold return to action on the road Friday at 6 P.M. as they are set to face off against the Fairfield Stags. The match will be streamed on ESPN+. 

SOCIAL MEDIA

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