SKIDMORE (2-7) vs. BARD (4-2)
Match Details: Friday, Sept. 18 | 4 p.m.
Location: Williamson Sports Center | Saratoga Springs, N.Y.
 
SKIDMORE (2-7) vs. #18 CLARKSON (0-1)
Match Details: Friday, Sept. 18 | 8 p.m.
Location: Williamson Sports Center | Saratoga Springs, N.Y.
 
SKIDMORE (2-7) vs. VASSAR (4-4)
Match Details: Saturday, Sept. 19 | 2 p.m.
Location: Union College | Schenectady, N.Y.
 
SKIDMORE (2-7) vs. ST. LAWRENCE (2-7)
Match Details: Saturday, Sept. 19 | 4 p.m.
Location: Union College | Schenectady, N.Y.
  
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y.–The Skidmore College volleyball team opens Liberty League with four key matches this weekend. The Thoroughbreds host Bard and #18 Clarkson on Friday before taking on Vassar and St. Lawrence at Union on Saturday.
 
Skidmore dropped its four matches in last weekend's Union Invitational. Caite Canfield recorded a double-double against Oneonta with 16 kills and 13 digs and added another against Division II Saint Michael's with 10 kills and 11 digs to go along with two aces. The team's leading hitter Allie Dillon posted 15 digs and seven kills against Oneonta, while Marcela Familiar-Bolaños had 17 digs. Freshmen setters Bailey Hutchins and Sam Abrams combined for 32 assists against Saint Michael's.
 
The Thoroughbreds lead the league in digs per set (17.53), while individually Familiar-Bolaños leads the conference with 5.78 digs per set.
 
SCOUTING BARD
Bard is on a three-match winning streak. The Raptors swept Yeshiva and Sarah Lawrence and battled to a five-set win against Maritime College, improving to 2-0 in five set matches this season. Bared leads the Liberty League in service aces per game (3.38). Freshman Sofia Koukia was named the Liberty League Rookie of the Week last week after compiling 45 kills, 25 digs and nine aces over the three matches, including 21 kills, 16 digs and three aces against Maritime. Freshman Victoria Chou recorded a career-high 43 assists in the win against Maritime.
 
Koukia is second in the league in kills per set (3.43) and third in service aces per set (0.75), while Chou is fifth in assists per set (7.55).
 
SCOUTING CLARKSON
Clarkson handed Canton its first loss of the season on Tuesday in a three-set sweep.  The 18th-ranked Golden Knights went 2-2 at the Juniata Invitational over the weekend with their two losses coming at the hands of #18 Mount Union and the host #5 Juniata.
 
Senior setter Kirstie Shurie averaged 10.7 assists, 0.24 aces, 0.47 kills, 1.97 digs and 0.24 blocks per set over the four matches at the Juniata Invitational, earning Liberty League Performer of the Week honors. She notched 56 assists against Mount Union and added 42 against Juniata.
 
The Golden Knights feature the league's top offense. They lead the conference in the league in hitting percentage (.234), assists per set (11.93) and kills per set (13.00). Clarkson has won 30 consecutive Liberty League matches.
 
SCOUTING VASSAR
Vassar is 1-3 over its last four matches. The Brewers have relied heavily on their defense and currently lead the league in opponent hitting percentage (.116) and rank second in blocks per set (1.30). Devan Gallagher and Gabby Miller have paced the offense, averaging 2.59 and 2.41 kills per set, respectively. Freshman setter Annie MacMillan has quarterbacked the offense in her first season and is averaging 7.48 assists per set. The Brewers have won 15 of 27 sets they have played this season, but are 0-3 in four sets.
 
SCOUTING ST. LAWRENCE
St. Lawrence fell to 2-7 on the season after going 1-3 at the Garden State Tournament. The Saints swept St. Joseph's (LI) in their first match of the tournament.
 
St. Lawrence has found a balance on both sides of the ball this season, leading the league in blocks per set (1.73) and ranking second in hitting percentage (.190) and third in kills per set (11.36). Six Saints players rank in the top six in the league in blocks per set, led by Cristina Deschaine's 6.36 blocks per set. Senior outside hitter Lexi Brown is averaging a team-best 3.0 kills per set, placing her fourth in the conference.