ALBANY, N.Y. – The Oswego State Women's Volleyball team traveled to Russell Sage College to compete in the Crosstown Challenge, where they capped off their weekend with a decisive 3–0 sweep over the Gators on Saturday morning.
 
THE BASICS
Final Score:
Oswego 3 (7-2, 0-0 SUNYAC)
Russell Sage 0 (3-5, 0-0 Empire 8)
25-20, 25-23, 25-23
 
Location: Robinson court at the Kahl Campus Center | Russell Sage College | Albany, N.Y.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
Russell Sage opened the first set with two quick points, but the Lakers answered right back with four straight, including a service ace from Grace Gdovin, to take a 4–2 lead. The teams exchanged points until Oswego began to pull away at 12–8 with a McReynolds kill, forcing a Gators timeout. The Lakers kept their momentum with kills from Gdovin and Gigi Basile to extend the lead to 15–9, and though Russell Sage strung together a small run, Oswego maintained control. Leading 19–15, the Lakers surged ahead with an ace from Lauren Cropp, a kill from McReynolds, and another Cropp ace to make it 22–15. The Gators tried to fight back late, but Oswego stayed composed and closed out the set 25–20.

Russell Sage opened the second set with a 2–1 lead before the Lakers responded with three straight points, highlighted by a Priscilla McReynolds kill, to go ahead. Much like the first set, the teams battled back and forth without either pulling away by more than two points, but Oswego stayed steady and extended their lead to 11–6 after an ace from Kalley Vugteveen and later to 13–8 with back-to-back kills from Alaina Dudzinski and Grace Gdovin, both set up by Mya Bush. The Gators answered with a three-point run to close the gap to one, then later surged ahead 16–15 with four straight points. After trading rallies, the Lakers regained control with a three-point stretch off a Gator error, a Vugteveen kill, and an ace from Juliana Santafemia, forcing a Russell Sage timeout at 19–16. The Gators nearly evened the score again, but Oswego pushed back to lead 21–18 before Russell Sage tied things at 21–21, sending the Lakers into a timeout. Composed under pressure, Oswego came out strong with two quick points, then closed the set 25–23 to take a 2–0 match lead.

Grace Gdovin opened the third set with a kill, and after a few early service exchanges, Oswego began to build momentum with back-to-back points for a 4–2 lead. Priscilla McReynolds and Kalley Vugteveen added kills to extend the margin to 7–3, and despite steady back-and-forth play, the Lakers held control, pushing the score to 13–7 after a strong Gdovin ace. Russell Sage closed the gap with three straight points, but McReynolds and Vugteveen answered with consecutive kills to steady Oswego's lead. The duo struck again shortly after, each adding another kill to make it 17–12. Though the Gators tried to hang around, Oswego stayed in front 20–15 before a Russell Sage timeout. Out of the break, the Gators mounted a five-point run to pull within one at 21–22, forcing the Lakers to regroup with a timeout of their own. The response was immediate, as Gigi Basile and Alaina Dudzinski delivered back-to-back kills to set up match point, and after a late push from Russell Sage, McReynolds sealed the sweep with the final kill in a 25–23 victory.

WHAT'S NEXT
The Lakers will return to action on Friday, September 19, for their first home matches of the season as they host the Oswego State Invitational. They will face Brockport and Keuka College on Friday, followed by contests against Utica University and SUNY Poly on Saturday, September 20.

Written By: Jillian Kraus