Following a notable 3-2 victory over Stony Brook last Friday, the Binghamton volleyball team failed to keep its momentum going at home. Binghamton (6-14, 3-4 America East) was unable to take down Albany (6-13, 6-1 AE), who carried a three-match win streak into Vestal and ultimately extended it to four games with a sweep against Binghamton.
UAlbany headed into the match after defeating Stony Brook the previous Sunday. The Great Danes lead the conference in standings, having earned six wins and showcasing a conference win percentage of .857.
Albany claimed victory by scores of 27-25, 25-20 and 25-20 in each set, respectively, sweeping the Bearcats and preventing Binghamton from gaining any sort of momentum. Binghamton played Albany closely statistically by scoring 56 points to their opponents’ 55, but the Bearcats failed to close out any of the three frames.
Junior outside hitter Gaby Alicea’s match-leading 14 kills and senior setter Sarah Ngo’s 41 assists were not enough for the Bearcats to gain the edge throughout the evening.
“This is a tough loss for us, we thought we could do better but they’re a pretty solid team over there,” said head coach Glenn Kiriyama. “We just have to keep working hard in the gym and practice a little bit better this week.”
The conference matchup brought a season-high attendance of 379 to the West Gym, and Binghamton fed off the energetic crowd to a 24-22 lead in the first set. However, the Great Danes rallied to close out the sequence with a 27-25 comeback victory that Binghamton never recovered from.
Albany jumped out to a 12-6 advantage in the second game and rode that lead to the end of the set. The Bearcats failed to make a comeback, and the Great Danes took the frame, 25-20.
“It gets us up for it, not a lot of letdowns and we know we’ll be ready out there, we just didn’t execute tonight,” Kiriyama said about Binghamton’s rivalry with Albany.
The third set consisted of runs, as both Albany and Binghamton strung together five consecutive points during the set. Nonetheless, with Binghamton leading 19-18, the Great Danes responded by securing seven of the final eight points to close out the match.
Boasting a 3-4 AE record, the Bearcats will finish out the season in the coming weeks with five consecutive conference matches, a stretch where Kiriyama knows the team can make or break its season. Two of the five games will be at home, which could be advantageous for the Bearcats, who have a 4-1 record on their home court but only a 2-13 record on the road.
The upcoming matchup with New Hampshire provides a familiar challenge as Binghamton defeated the Wildcats, 3-1, earlier in the season. Hoping to find some degree of success away, Binghamton needs to capture a conference victory not in the West Gym.
“We know we can compete with them,” Kiriyama said. “It’s gonna be a little tougher on the road but if we play hard, good things will happen.”
Searching for their fourth AE victory of the season, Binghamton starts a two-game road trip against the Wildcats on Friday, Oct. 27. The match is slated for 7 p.m. at Lundholm Gymnasium in Durham, New Hampshire.