Olson Posts 12 Kills as Volleyball Hosts Dowling
Box Score DOBBS FERRY, N.Y. (Oct. 27, 2015) – Despite a near double-double from freshman Peyton Olson (Albany, Ore./West Albany), the Mercy College volleyball team dropped a 3-0 (11-25, 23-25, 20-25) decision to East Coast Conference (ECC) foe Dowling College on Tuesday night at Mercy Gymnasium.
The Mavericks (6-22, 1-10 ECC) drop the season series to the Golden Lions (19-5, 9-2 ECC) who have now won five in a row.
For the Mavericks, Olson led the team with 12 kills and had nine digs, while freshman Brianna Heffernan (East Islip, N.Y./East Islip) did her part to keep the match close by contributing a match-high 17 digs. Freshman Brooke Runge (Closter, N.J./Northern Valley Demarest) helped orchestrate the attack with 19 assists, while fellow freshman Eva Marie Lynch (New Windsor, N.Y./Cornwall) ended the night with six kills.
The Golden Lions received double-digit kills from Weronika Wiezik who led the offense with 14 kills and Jessica Kalbfleisch who contributed ten kills. Kayla Dillman helped out with 39 assists.
In the first set, the Mavericks saw some tough competition as the Golden Lions had 15 kills and a .406 hitting percentage. Dowling controlled the action in the frame as they led from start to finish, ending the set on a 10-1 run to take a 1-0 lead.
In the second set, Dowling would keep up their offensive momentum, having another 15 kills in the set. The Mavericks fell behind 21-19 in the set, but responded with four unanswered to take a late 23-21 lead. Mercy looked to be on the verge of tying up the match, but the Golden Lions showed why they are one of the top teams in the ECC as they came back with four straight to end the set and take a 2-0 lead. The set was close throughout as there was a total of 14 ties and nine lead changes.
The final set saw the visitors jump out to a 17-13 lead, forcing a Mavericks timeout. Out of the timeout Mercy went on a 5-2 spurt to get within a point at 19-18. However, Dowling ended any hope of a comeback for the Mavericks as they ended the set on a 6-2 run to seal the match.
The Mavericks hit .173 on the night with 32 kills and 43 digs, while the Golden Lions hit .295 with a total of 44 kills and 52 digs.
Head Coach Kelly Wengerter and the Mavericks will host Bridgeport on Thursday, October 29th at 7 p.m.
