FREDONIA, N.Y. – The Fredonia Blue Devils volleyball team was locked in an intense battle with the New Paltz Hawks on Friday afternoon in front of a raucous crowd inside Dods Hall.
The match saw a plethora of back-and-forth action between two teams who were both fighting for the No. 1 SUNYAC seeding -- and home-floor advantage throughout the upcoming tournament.
When the dust cleared, New Paltz emerged victorious, 3-1. The Hawks will now need a win Saturday over either Geneseo or Oswego to claim the top spot.
The Blue Devils can finish as the No. 2 seed either by winning twice Saturday, or Geneseo losing once, when pool play resumes in Dods Hall at 10 a.m.
Fredonia won the first set Friday, 27-25, before the Hawks bounced back to take the next three sets by the scores of 25-17, 25-13, and 26-24.
Trailing 24-20 in the first set, Fredonia coach Geoff Braun called a timeout to rally the troops. Braun's decision turned out to be the right call as the Blue Devils rallied for five straight points after the timeout to take a 25-24 lead. The serving of Courtney Poirier (West Seneca, N.Y. / West Seneca) played an essential role in the Blue Devils climbing their way back into the set. New Paltz tied the set back up at 25 before Fredonia put the match away with two straight points.
The second set started well for Fredonia with a kill by Paulina Rein (Baldwinsville, N.Y. / C.W. Baker) to give the Blue Devils and early 1-0 lead. The Blue Devils continued their solid play in the early portion of the set, and held a 9-7 lead before the Hawks ripped off four straight points to take an 11-9 advantage. New Paltz never looked back and won the set, 25-17.
In set three, New Paltz took control of the match with a 4-0 run to begin the set. The Hawks also went on a 5-0 run during the set, and concluded the set by collecting 9 out of 10 points.
Fredonia's back was against the wall to begin the fourth set as they fell behind 6-1. The Blue Devils played from behind for the majority of the set before working their back to a 22-21 lead after scoring four straight points. The remainder of the set saw the two teams trade blows, and after the score was tied at 24-all, the Hawks responded with two straight points to win the set and the match.
Rein led the charge for the Blue Devils with 10 kills and 12 digs. Jessica DiChristopher (Cheektowaga, N.Y. / West Seneca East) collected 11 kills, and Lauren Hokaj (Lancaster, N.Y. / St. Mary's of Lancaster) had 24 digs.
Fredonia fell to 19-8 on the season, and 6-1 in SUNYAC play. New Paltz improved to their record to 24-5 on the year, and 8-0 in the conference.
The Blue Devils return to action tomorrow at 10 a m with a match against Oswego. The Blue Devils will also be in action at 12:30 p m against Geneseo.
