BUFFALO, NY – Buffalo State (18-9) cruised to a pair of straight-set victories over Hilbert (2-23) and St. John Fisher (9-16) on Saturday afternoon at the Buffalo State Tri-Match held in Sports Arena. Saturday's matches were also Senior Day and marked the final regular season home matches for Bengal seniors Sam Parente (E. Patchogue, NY/Bellport), Allie Opera (Lancaster, NY/Lancaster) and Jessica Crooks (Niagara Falls, NY/Niagara-Wheatfield).
In the morning match against Hilbert, Buffalo State easily defeated the Hawks by scores of 25-15, 25-11 and 25-10. The Bengals tallied 40 kills, including a team-best 12 by Kayla Pyc (Grand Island, NY/Grand Island). Crooks added 10 kills, three digs and three assists, while Jennifer Cecchettini (Hamburg, NY/Frontier) tallied 20 assists. Britt Hallett-Jonathan (Basom, NY/Akron) chipped in 13 assists as well and Rachelle Kelchlin (West Seneca, NY/St. Mary's) finished the match with 10 digs.
In the second match of the day, St. John Fisher put up a fight early, but the Bengals buckled down for the 25-21 win. Buffalo State finished off the Cardinals in the next two sets by scores of 25-14 and 25-16. Parente paced the offense against St. John Fisher, tallying 15 kills, while Crooks added another 10. Cecchettini continued to lead the team in assists, recording 26. Defensively, Kelchlin tallied a team-high 19 digs.
Buffalo State returns to action on Tuesday night for a matchup against Nazareth in Rochester at 7 p.m.
