Volleyball picks up first wins of the season, splits weekend series

SUNY Geneseo’s volleyball team started their season strong this past weekend during tournament play at Franklin & Marshall College. On Friday, Sept. 8, they beat St. John Fisher in five sets for their first win of the season, before falling short after a dogfight in another five-set match against Heidelberg. Following that, on Saturday, Sept. 9, the Knights fell short to John Carroll in a three-set match but wrapped up their weekend on a high note with a win against Nazareth in five sets.

At the start of their match against the Cardinals, the Knights struggled to find their groove as they fell short 25-10. They proved themselves a force to be reckoned with, however, as senior outside hitter Madison Popielski struck a match with her five-point serving run in the second set. The run burned a fire in the team as they secured the set with a double block from senior opposite hitter Julia Wallace and junior middle blocker Madison Gamberg, after tying the score at 27.

Popielski stepped up once again in the third set when she gave the Knights a nine-point run to secure a 19-13 lead. Wallace secured the victory with a kill to put Geneseo on top, 25-18. 

In their fifth and final set against the Cardinals, the Knights blazed ahead with a 4-0 lead, but trailed later in the set, 11-10. A kill from Gamberg, followed by an ace from Popielski and a match-point kill from sophomore opposite hitter Sommer Madigan, led Geneseo to a 15-13 victory.

Their match against Heidelberg told a different story, as they lost their first set 28-26, and later picked it up in the next two sets with 25-23 and 25-18 wins. The Knights’ second set victory was in sight after a big kill from senior middle blocker Alisiana Muscoreil at 23-23. Freshman defender Zooey Gagnier scored a huge ace to bring Geneseo to set point. An error from Heidelberg handed the Knights a 25-23 second set win. 

Sets four and five proved to be too much for Geneseo, though, as they dropped them 25-21 and 15-12. Geneseo was handed a 3-2 loss against Heidelberg to finish their Friday play.

After Friday’s games, Madigan had amassed 20 kills and junior setter Allie Driesen totaled a whopping 29 assists. On defense, senior libero Cecilia Dignan lived up to her name with 36 digs.

The Knights started Saturday’s play on a slow note as they lost the opening set against John Carroll University, 25-19. With a determination to win, Geneseo was able to push off the victory as they fought for two set points. Ultimately, the Knights fell with a 27-25 loss in the second set. In the third, Geneseo started on the wrong foot which left John Carroll with the 25-15 win.

Geneseo made their big comeback after trailing behind two sets against Nazareth, 25-23 in both, and found themselves winning the third set, 25-21. In the fourth, the Knights asserted their dominance with a 25-23 win, with a set-clinching kill by Gamberg. 

Geneseo was able to pull out a 15-12 victory in the fifth with a match-point ace from sophomore setter Carolyn Mack. Popielski led the day with 17 kills between the two matches. Mack had 22 assists against the Nazareth Golden Flyers, and Friesen had 14 against the Blue Streaks.

Looking ahead, the Knights will begin a tournament in Ithaca on Friday, Sept. 15. They will play Susquehanna University on Friday and both Ithaca College and Johns Hopkins University on Saturday as they will look to improve their 2023 record.

Thumbnail via GeneseoKnights.com