After playing in the Empire 8 Championship Match last season, the Keuka College Women’s Volleyball team got off to a strong start to conference play in 2024 by sweeping Elmira College on Wednesday.
Dayna Edholm (Buffalo, N.Y. / Sweet Home) led Keuka College (5-8, 1-0 Empire 8) with 17 kills. First-year Lilah Cousins (Denver, Colo. / Westminster) posted a career-high eight kills for the Wolves. The offense flowed through Casey Hunziker (Rome, N.Y. / Rome Free Academy) with 30 assists in the sweep.
Keuka College 3 at Elmira College 0 – 25-16, 26-24, 25-22
A five-point run early in the first set gave the Wolves an 8-2 advantage. Keuka College played with the lead and didn’t let Elmira get back into it. They pushed the advantage to nine multiple times in the frame and even bumped it to 10 at 24-14. A kill by Bryn Straub (Irondequoit, N.Y. / Irondequoit) ended the first for the Wolves.
Elmira looked to bounce back on their home floor and kept the second set close throughout. Tied 16-16, the Wolves scored four straight to take the lead in the set. However, Elmira answered back with five straight to take the lead as the second set came down to the final points. The Wolves would serve for the set following a kill by Straub, the Soaring Eagles answered to tie it at 24-24. Straub once again let Keuka serve for the set with another kill. This time, Dayna Edholm put the ball to the floor as the Wolves took the second set 26-24.
The Wolves rolled the momentum into the third set winning the first four points. Keuka played from ahead for most of the set, but the Soaring Eagles kept it close. A four-point run by Elmira tied the third set at 20-20. A block by Lilah Cousins and Sydney Haust (Seneca Falls, N.Y. / Mynderse Academy) snapped the run and sparked four straight points by the Wolves to bring up match point. Keuka College thought they won it as Summer Elza (Goodyear, Ariz. / The Odyssey Institute of Advanced and International Studies) dropped a serve in the court. It was called an ace by the line judge, but over-ruled by the referee and the match continued. However, it was not for long. Gabby Fenton (Buckeye, Ariz. / The Odyssey Institute of Advanced and International Studies) hit a kill to end the third set 25-22 as the Wolves swept the match.
KC Notes:
- In a series that started in 1975, Keuka College has now won its third straight match over Elmira College. The Wolves are now 9-38 all-time against Elmira
- The Wolves hit 45 kills against the Soaring Eagles on Wednesday. It was the most by Keuka in a three-set match this season
- Keuka also limited the errors with a season-high .284 hitting percentage
- With her 17 kills, Dayna Edholm continues to climb the career kills list. The graduate student now has 864 in her career and passed Adrienne Hollenbeck ’07 for sixth all-time
Up Next for Keuka College: The Wolves continue Empire 8 play with their first home conference game of the year this Friday. Keuka College will host Houghton University at 6 p.m. on Friday at the JMW Recreation and Athletics Center. The Wolves defeated the Highlanders in five sets on Sweet Court last season.
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