The women’s volleyball team finished the final weekend before Ivy League play with a split in the Temple Tournament. The Red (2-7) defeated Central Connecticut State, 3-1, Saturday morning and lost in the tournament final to Temple in straight sets. Cornell begins Ivy League play next Saturday in New York City against rival Columbia.
The Red earned its second victory on the young season early Saturday in large part to junior middle blocker Rachel D’Epagnier and her team-leading .542 hitting percentage. Junior captain Kelly Marble led Cornell with 16 kills, just ahead of freshman Breanna Wong’s 15.
The Red won the first two sets relatively easy, but lost the third set 25-23. In the fourth set, Cornell came out hot with an 8-2 advantage and cruised to victory, 25-13, to clinch the win.
Saturday evening was a different story as the Red lost to the host Owls in straight sets to drop their seventh match of the season. D’Epagnier had another solid performance recording one block to equal six total blocks on the day earning her the Best Blocker Award for the tournament. Marble had two aces earning her the tournament’s Best Server Award.
Cornell begins the most important part of its schedule next weekend as it matches up against Columbia in New York City. The women dropped both matches against the Lions last year, but hold an impressive 46-8 advantage in the all-time series against the Ivy League foe. The Lions have fared better than the Red in the preseason posting a 5-4 record against non-conference opponents so the matchup over the weekend should be an interesting one.
Original Author: Scott Eckl