Skidmore College Athletics

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – The Skidmore College women's volleyball team split a pair of five-set matches Saturday to close the Skidmore Classic at the Williamson Sports Center. The Thoroughbreds outlasted Roger Williams 3-2 (27-29, 25-17, 20-25, 25-19, 15-11) before falling to Oswego State 3-2 (18-25, 30-28, 23-25, 25-15, 10-15) to finish the day at 5-3.
 
MATCH 1: Skidmore 3, Roger Williams 2

• Chloe Heitman powered the Skidmore attack with 19 kills on .319 hitting and added 11 digs and three service aces for a double-double. Natalie Pedersen finished with 12 kills while hitting .346, and Katy O'Connell added nine kills.
• Catriona Hoelperl also posted a double-double with 47 assists and 11 digs. Marlowe McIntyre collected a team-high 12 digs and joined Heitman, Athena Braverman and Cece Kilroy with three aces apiece as the Thoroughbreds finished with 13 as a team.
• The opening set was a back-and-forth battle featuring 16 ties and 10 lead changes. Skidmore erased a 21-19 deficit and moved in front 24-23 on a Chloe Heitman kill, but Roger Williams answered. Natalie Pedersen tied it at 26, Cece Kilroy did the same at 27, before the Hawks scored the final two points to take the marathon opener, 29-27.
• Skidmore responded immediately in the second. The Thoroughbreds broke a 4-4 tie with three straight points and gradually stretched the advantage, going up 12-7 and later 20-13. Roger Williams never got closer than five the rest of the way, and Madison Manning put away the final two points with consecutive kills for a 25-17 win.
• The third was even at 19 before a Roger Williams attack error put Skidmore ahead 20-19. The Hawks responded with the final six points of the set, however, with Peyton Felix supplying four kills during the closing run before a service ace finished the 25-20 decision and put Roger Williams ahead 2-1.
• With its back against the wall, Skidmore jumped out quickly in the fourth. Athena Braverman's ace helped the Thoroughbreds build a 6-2 lead, and a Marlowe McIntyre ace later made it 9-3. Ahead 17-12, Skidmore rattled off three straight with McIntyre serving — an ace, a Roger Williams setting error and a Kilroy kill — to push the margin to eight. The Hawks got back to 20-16, but Skidmore steadied and Pedersen eventually finished the 25-19 win to force a fifth.
• Roger Williams scored the first two points of the fifth and later opened a 7-3 advantage. Skidmore chipped away and pulled within 7-6, capped by a Kilroy ace, before the Hawks moved back ahead 9-6. Two straight Roger Williams attack errors made it 9-8, and Pedersen later cut another two-point deficit to 10-9.The Hawks went up 11-9 on a Rylie Eisenhard kill, but they would not score again. Pedersen sided out to make it 11-10, and with Catriona Hoelperl at the service line, Skidmore rattled off the final five points. A Roger Williams attack error tied it before Heitman put the Thoroughbreds ahead. Pedersen followed with consecutive kills, and Kilroy hammered the match-clinching point for a 15-11 win. Skidmore hit .571 in the fifth with 10 kills and just two errors on 14 attacks.

 
MATCH 2: Oswego State 3, Skidmore 2

• Kilroy led Skidmore with 18 kills and added 11 digs for a double-double. Heitman recorded her second double-double of the day with 14 kills and 11 digs, while Madison Manning contributed eight kills on .318 hitting in three sets.
• Hoelperl handed out 51 assists, fired a match-high six aces and collected 13 digs for her second double-double of the day as well. Her 98 assists across Saturday's two matches pushed her past 1,700 for her career and to 1,731.
• Oswego took the opener 25-18 before Skidmore surged to a 7-1 lead in the second behind two Hoelperl aces. Braverman later rattled off three consecutive aces to make it 20-14, but the Lakers battled back to tie the set at 23. The teams traded points deep into extra play before Heitman delivered an ace to clinch the 30-28 Skidmore win.
• The Thoroughbreds nearly erased a six-point deficit in the third, pulling to within 24-23 before Oswego closed out the 25-23 victory. Skidmore responded emphatically in the fourth, hitting .250 in a 25-15 win to force another fifth set.
• Oswego hit .400 in the deciding frame with nine kills and just one error and held Skidmore to .000 hitting to take the fifth, 15-10. The Lakers finished the match at .293 compared to .176 for Skidmore and held an 82-64 advantage in digs. Skidmore produced 15 service aces to Oswego's seven. McIntyre led the Thoroughbreds with 15 digs, while O'Connell totaled two solo blocks and three block assists.

 
UP NEXT
Skidmore returns to the Williamson Sports Center for Senior Day on Saturday, Sept. 19. The Thoroughbreds will host Russell Sage at 11 a.m. and Plattsburgh State at 3 p.m.