Oswego State Athletics

Oswego, N.Y. - The Oswego State Women's Volleyball team split Day 1 of the Oswego Invitational, downing the Alfred Saxons 3 sets to 0, but falling to the Clarkson Golden Knights to end the night 3 sets to 1.

Basics

Oswego: 3 (2-5, 0-0 SUNYAC)

Alfred: 0 (3-7, 0-0 Empire 8)

Location: Max Ziel Gymnasium | Oswego, NY

How it Happened

The Lakers started off the night winning their first set against the Saxons 25-16, setting the tone for what would become a match of fluid offense by the Lakers. Over the course of their first set win, Oswego never allowed Alfred to take the lead, instead taking advantage of the 8 separate attack errors that would help keep their lead comfortably out of reach.

In set #2, Alfred was able to keep the score within reach, with both teams trading points and keeping the game competitive. Unfortunately for the Saxons, the Laker offense continued to challenge them and Oswego was able to pull away at the end of the set with a tight 25-21 victory.

The highlight set of the night for Oswego proved to be their third against Alfred, where the Laker offense hummed. The Lakers had 11 kills compared to the Saxons' 9 and had a whopping .579 hit percentage, allowing them to take a dominant win at 25-11 and secure their second victory of the season. Gigi Basile proved to be an offensive weapon tonight with 8 total kills, while Piper Adams added on with 5 total service aces. Mya Bush helped set the Lakers up for the win tonight with 27 total assists.
 

Basics

Oswego: 1 (2-6, 0-0 SUNYAC)

Clarkson: 3 (7-2, 0-0 Liberty League)

Location: Max Ziel Gymnasium | Oswego, NY
 

How it Happened

The first set against Clarkson continued to show off the effective combination between Gigi Basile and Mya Bush, with Priscilla McReynolds chipping in some kills. Libero Juliana Santafemia also showed defensive tenacity in Oswego's first set against the Golden Knights with some critical digs to keep the Lakers ahead.

The final result of the second set doesn't tell the full story, as the Lakers mounted multiple comebacks against a Clarkson team who wanted to even the score. Oswego opened the set going down 0-5, calling timeout to regroup. Despite the timeout, the Lakers continued to struggle, eventually falling down 10-4. A service error by Clarkson gave the Laker's offense a much-needed spark to bring the game within four at 14-10, then tying at 19-19. From there, Oswego was able to secure a small lead at 21-19, before ultimately falling 23-25 after multiple intense rallies.

A combination of a relentless Clarkson offense and mistakes by the Lakers resulted in their second set lost for the night in set 3. The Golden Knights continued with their momentum into the fourth set up 6-12 early, until Oswego was able to put it together, pushing the score first to 12-16, and eventually tying at 20-20. Despite their efforts, the Lakers were not able to secure the victory, with Clarkson taking home the set win at 22-25, and the match win at 3-1.
 

What's Next

The Oswego Lakers will host the Bard College Raptors and the Utica Pioneers in Max Ziel Gymnasium for day two of the Oswego State Invitational. Those two games are scheduled for tomorrow,September 19th, set to start at 10:00 AM and 6:00 PM respectively.