The Binghamton volleyball team recorded its first match win of the season over the weekend when it defeated Niagara and the Jack Kaiser Classic. The Bearcats, however, couldn’t keep the momentum going, falling in three straight sets against La Salle and St. John’s.
“We didn’t start off strong, but we had a really nice match against Niagara where we saw a lot of good things,” said BU head coach Glenn Kiriyama. “The intensity level was much higher and things seemed to click better.”
The Bearcats began the tournament against La Salle on Friday night. BU was completely overmatched, falling in three consecutive sets to the Explorers (7-1). Freshman outside hitter Lauren Kornmann was a bright spot for the Bearcats in their first matchup of the weekend, contributing three kills and two blocks in her first collegiate start.
Fortunately for the Bearcats, Kornmann carried her good form into Saturday’s game against Niagara. In the first set, Kornmann scored twice early on to give the Bearcats a 4-2 lead. After leading throughout the first set, the Bearcats finished off the Purple Eagles (1-6). An ace from junior setter Sarah Ngo followed by an assist to Kornmann lifted BU to a 25-20 set victory.
After the Bearcats fell behind 19-18 in the second set, Kornmann answered with two aces to give the Bearcats the lead. After BU went up, 21-19, the Purple Eagles rallied to tie the score at 23. Ngo once again propelled the Bearcats to victory as she found sophomore outside hitter Erin Shultz to regain the lead. Ngo then found Kornmann for another game-ending kill, giving the Bearcats the second set, 25-23.
The third and final set proved to be a tight one, as both teams managed to stay within two points of one another throughout the set. Junior middle hitter Kristella Morina contributed some crucial blocks, including a block to give Binghamton an edge, 22-21. With the score tied at 23, Ngo again came through in the clutch as she assisted senior middle hitter Bianca Anderson for two final kills to cap the set, 25-23, and take the match victory. Kornmann continued her breakout performance by recording four kills.
Kiriyama was pleased with the rookie’s offensive contribution.
“Kornmann had a nice match on the outside,” Kiriyama said. “Overall, our offense clicked.”
The final match of the tournament was similar to BU’s first match in that it failed to win a single set against tournament host St. John’s. The Red Storm handled the Bearcats easily in the first set, resulting in a 25-16 win. BU looked much better in the final two sets, refusing to allow St. John’s an easy victory. The Red Storm (6-0) proved to be too much as they won both sets by a 25-20 margin. St. John’s held the Bearcats to a .146 hitting percentage while they hit at a much higher .304 percent.
Senior libero Bailey Walker earned all-tournament team recognition, tallying 42 digs and seven assists through BU’s three matches this weekend.
Binghamton is off to a slow start this season, having recorded just a single victory in six games this season. Regardless, Kiriyama is confident in his team’s ability to pick up the slack and move forward.
“I saw a lot of improvement over the last week,” Kiriyama said. “We need to hit better, have better efficiency and cut down on the errors.”
BU is set to participate in the Northeastern Tournament next weekend. The Bearcats’ first matchup, against Presbyterian, is set to get underway Friday at 4:30 p.m. from the Cabot Center in Boston, Massachusetts.