BALTIMORE, MD – The Iona University volleyball team finished the Towson/Coppin State Invitational on Saturday as they faced Coppin State and Princeton. In the first match of the day the Maroon and Gold fell to Coppin State in a tough three sets and in the second match of the day they fell to Princeton in three sets. 

MATCH ONE: Coppin State 3, IOna 0

• SET 1: The Gaels got on the board with a service error from the Eagles, but four straight attack errors left them trailing by seven. The Eagles kept control the rest of the way, and Iona dropped the opening set 25-15.
• SET 2: After falling behind by four, the Gaels fought back with three unanswered points, pulling within one after an Eagles attack error. Another miscue from Coppin State tied the score, and a service ace from sophomore Kari Smith gave Iona its first lead of the day. Junior Buse Tinaz capped a 4-1 run with a kill to push the advantage to three. A late Eagles rally, fueled by their offense, flipped the momentum as they edged out the Gaels 27-25.
• SET 3: The set began as a back-and-forth battle, with the score knotted at seven. A 5-2 run fueled by freshman Julia Leonardo put the Gaels ahead by one, but the Eagles responded with a 6-2 stretch to retake the lead. They never gave it up, closing out the frame 25-18.

IONA PERFORMERS

• Leonardo led the Maroon & Gold in kills with six and behind her was sophomore Taylor Timko with five.
• Senior Caleigh Schroeder tallied a double-double with assists (14) and digs (11).
• Tinaz and junior Ezzie Thompson both had a solo block.

THE OPPONENT

• TaKenya Stafford led the offense for the Eagles with 13 kills and 15.5 points.
• Azul Pilahg had a double-double in assists (17) and digs (14).
• Coco Figueroa led in digs with 18.

MATCH TWO: Princeton 3, Iona 0

• SET 1: The Gaels earned their first lead of the match at 7-5 with a four-point run that included two kills from Smith. The Maroon & Gold stretched the advantage to four, but an 8-1 run by the Tigers swung momentum back their way. Princeton added onto that run as they would close the set on an 18-4 run to win the set 25-15.
• SET 2: The set began as a tight battle until the Maroon & Gold built a three-point lead with four unanswered points. Princeton quickly responded with a 9-2 run to go up by four, and that spark carried the Tigers to a 25-18 win.
• SET 3: The Tigers opened with a 5-2 run that set the tone for the rest of the set, as they maintained control the rest of the way. The Tigers closed out the set winning 25-13. 

IONA PERFORMERS

• Smith led the offense with eight kills and eight points.
• Sophomore Jaylyn Simon was the assist leader with nine.
• Leonardo was the leader in digs with eight.

THE OPPONENT

• Valerie Nutakor had a double-double with kills (12) and digs (12).
• Sydney Draper had a team high 41 assists.
• Sydney Bold had 15 digs and Nutakor was right behind her with 14.

NEXT MATCH

The Gaels return home to Hynes on Wednesday to face off against Columbia to kick off their campaign at 2025 Iona/FDU Invitational. Tip off is set for 6 P.M.

SOCIAL MEDIA

Be sure to follow Iona University athletics on all social media platforms:
Iona Gaels: Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube (Email Updates).
Iona Volleyball: Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.