ANNANDALE-ON-HUDSON, N.Y. - The Bard College women's volleyball team defeated both Maritime College and St. Joseph's College of Long Island in a tri-match on Saturday.
Previous to this season, Bard women's volleyball had never won two five-set matches on the same day. Well, this team did it back on Sept. 11, then did it again on Saturday. Bard rallied to beat Maritime 22-25, 25-18, 23-25, 25-20 and 15-9 - then rallied to beat St. Joseph's 25-27, 25-23, 25-21, 19-25 and 15-12.
"It took us a while to get into the swing of things against Maritime, because we had some limitations in terms of personnel," Bard coach
Stefanie Carrington said. "
Laurel Edwards was lights out in that first match and she continued her dominance against St. Joseph's. We didn't play our best against Maritime, but we were able to bounce back and play better."
Edwards had 18 kills against Maritime and 14 against St. Joseph's;
Adi David had 69 assists on the day combined, and
Puja Clements led the team with 19 digs against Maritime, 22 against St. Joseph's.
"The team was focused today and playing together, and playing
for one another instead of just
with one another," Carrington said. "Against St. Joseph's,
Adi David distributed the ball to a variety of players. She's so thoughtful and exacting in the way she runs the offense; she truly plays the mental part of the game like a senior."
Everyone got into the act in the second match, like
Anna Skamser (8 kills),
Ryan Lum (9 kills),
Annie Couey (15 digs) and
Precious Star (6 kills, 4 blocks).
"Playing five-set matches is certainly thrilling and fun for the crowd," Carrington added. "There's a lot more satisfaction, I think, in winning a closely contested match because you feel like you've earned it.
"
Emily Peck and
Annie Couey strung together some really important serving runs for us against St. Joseph's," Carrington added. "I don't think I've ever had a player like Emily, who really thrives in pressure-packed environments. She and Annie were instrumental in warding off defeat in the second match."
Up next for Bard is a non-league match against SUNY Delhi on Tuesday.
