BUFFALO, NY – The Buffalo State women's volleyball team closed out the Bengal Challenge with a split, earning a 3-0 victory over the Alfred State Pioneers before falling 0-3 to the St. John Fisher Cardinals.

GAME ONE BASICS

FINAL SCORE: Buffalo State – 3, Alfred State – 0
SET SCORES: (25-18, 25-21, 25-9)
LOCATION: Sports Arena – Buffalo, NY
RECORDS: Buffalo State: 6-7 (0-0 SUNYAC), Alfred State: 6-5 (0-0 AMCC)

INSIDE THE BENGAL BOX SCORE

• Ella Wittman (Cheektowaga, NY/Springville Griffith) led the Bengals' offense with nine kills, while Reagan Schneider (Corfu, NY/Pembroke) added seven.
• April Jakubowski (Lancaster, NY/Lancaster) directed the attack with a game-high 24 assists.
• Defensively, Wittman posted a team-leading 10 digs, with Hailey Kulniszewski (Elma, NY/Iroquois) close behind with nine. At the net, Delaney McCarthy (Smithtown, NY/Smithtown West) tallied two blocks for the Bengals.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Coming off a tough loss to Baldwin Wallace, the Buffalo State Bengals looked to bounce back strong against the Alfred State Pioneers. The Bengals opened the match on fire, rattling off five straight points to grab an early lead. After trading points with the Pioneers, the Bengals closed the set with a four-point rally followed by three straight points to secure the opening frame. 
• In the second set, the Bengals kept the momentum rolling, opening with six unanswered points to take control. The Pioneers fought to stay within striking distance, but another late four-point surge pushed the Bengals over the top to claim the set and move within one of a sweep. 
• The third set was all Bengals, as they stormed out to a commanding lead with a nine-point run to start the set. The Bengals never looked back, adding back-to-back five-point rallies to seal the sweep over the Pioneers in dominant fashion.

FOR THE FOES

• Alayna Tomlinson led the Pioneers with seven kills, while Gloria Stem added six. Gabriella Thurmond set the offense up with 18 assists.
• Defensively, Ava Wickes led the team with eight digs, and Ali Hillyard recorded two blocks at the net. 

GAME TWO BASICS

FINAL SCORE: St. John Fisher - 3, Buffalo State - 0
SET SCORES: (19-25, 12-25, 20-25)
LOCATION: Sports Arena – Buffalo, NY
RECORDS:  Buffalo State: 6-8 (0-0 SUNYAC), St. John Fisher: 12-1 (0-0 Empire 8)

INSIDE THE BENGAL BOX SCORE

• Wittman once again led the Bengals' offense with nine kills, while Acosta added six. Jakubowski directed the attack with a team-leading 21 assists.
• On the defensive end, Adi Vergara (Rio Grande, Puerto Rico/Kingdom Christian) anchored the back row with 12 digs, with Karlie Shaffer (Smithtown, NY/Smithtown East) close behind with 11. McCarthy continued her strong presence at the net, tallying two blocks.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Coming off a strong win over Alfred State earlier in the day, the Bengals looked to close out their night with another victory, this time against the St. John Fisher Cardinals. The Bengals came out confident, trading points early and keeping the set close through the midway point. The Bengals found success at the net and forced several Cardinal errors, but a late Cardinals run gave the visitors the edge as they claimed the opening set.
• The second set saw the Cardinals seize control, coming out aggressive and keeping the Bengals' offense off balance. Despite the Bengals effort to rally, the Cardinals used multiple scoring runs, including a five-point burst midway through, to take the set and put the Bengals on the brink.
• The Bengals responded with its best volleyball of the night in the third frame, going kill-for-kill with the Cardinals and using strong defense to keep the pressure on. The Bengals stayed within striking distance until the final points, but a late push from the Cardinals secured the set and completed the sweep in a hard-fought battle.
   

FOR THE FOES

• Kaylene Noble and Kalyna Dannenberg powered the Cardinals' offense with 12 kills apiece, while Reilly Morrow dished out a match-high 31 assists.
• Defensively, Kiera Hartpence led the way with 12 digs, with Dannenberg and Noble each adding 11. Ana Gutman anchored the front line with a team-leading three blocks. 
   

UP NEXT
The Bengals will look to bounce back from a challenging tournament as they hit the road to face Nazareth University on Wednesday, September 24th, at 6 p.m.