DALLAS, PA - Oneonta wrapped up the first day of the Misericordia Cougar Clash on Friday, going 1-1 on the evening. The Red Dragons swept Centenary 3-0 before falling 3-1 to Alfred. Oneonta now moves to 7-8 overall.
Oneonta took down Centenary (3-12) in three sets, winning 25-17, 25-22, and 25-7. Junior Gianna May (Baldwinsville, NY/Baldwinsville) finished with a match-high 12 kills, junior Sabrina Squicciarini (Manorville, NY/St. Anthony's) had seven, and junior Katie Spano (Dryden, NY/Dryden) tallied six. Junior Anna Moller (Long Beach, NY/Long Beach Senior High School) sent in four aces and grabbed 21 digs. Freshman Hailey Herrera (Brooklyn, NY/Park Slope Collegiate) had 20 assists, and first-year Addison Tanton (/) made 12.
Jenny Thistlethwaite led the Cyclones with eight kills and one ace. Vanessa Pagano made 11 assists, and Asia Logan made 12 digs.
After Centenary took a 5-2 lead in the first set, Oneonta went on a 4-0 run with a pair of kills from Herrera. The Cyclones tied 7-7 following a Kim Stallworth kill before the Red Dragons retook the lead with a kill by Spano. Oneonta rattled off a 5-0 run with two Moller aces to go ahead 18-10. The Red Dragons never gave up the lead, and Spano won the set on a kill.
The Cyclones used a 3-0 span to go up 18-12 in the second set. Oneonta responded with a 7-0 run capped off with two straight kills by Tanton. Centenary's Cameron Fulcher tied 19-19 on a kill before Oneonta scored four consecutive points. The Cyclones pulled within 24-22 before Spano knocked in another kill to win the set.
An 11-0 Oneonta run highlighted the third set as the Red Dragons jumped ahead 13-1. A pair of Moller aces pushed the lead to 23-6, and sophomore Emma Morretta (Mahopac, NY/Mahopac) sent in the final kill.
In the second match, Alfred (7-1) took the game 3-1. The Saxons won the first two sets 25-22 and 25-19 before the Red Dragons took the third 25-17. Alfred wrapped up with a 25-20 win in the fourth.
May led Oneonta with 12 kills, and Spano added six. Moller tacked on two aces and 22 digs. Moretta had seven blocks, while Herrera finished with 26 assists.
Alfred had three players with double-digit kills in Taylor Malone (14), Carleigh Santavy (10), and Catherina Krause (10). Jessica Lucille Ramirez finished with 25 assists, and Jamie Chun had 29 digs.
Oneonta took a 10-1 lead in the first set, but Alfred slowly chipped away until cutting the advantage to 14-8. May sent a kill to push the Red Dragons' lead to seven, but a 7-0 Saxons' run tied 15-15. May gave Oneonta a 22-21 lead, but Alfred closed out on a 4-0 span to go up 1-0.
After Autumn Singleton (Montgomery, NY/Valley Central) and Morretta blocked an attack to tie 11-11 in the second, Alfred went on a 6-1 span to lead by five points. The Saxons never gave up the lead afterward and went ahead 2-0.
The Red Dragons used a 4-0 run with two blocks from Moretta and a May kill to lead 19-13. A block from junior Colleen McCabe (Rockville Centre, NY/Oceanside) pushed the lead to 23-17. An Alfred error and an ace by Moller cut the sets to 2-1.
The Saxons built a 7-1 lead in the fourth and held for the rest of the set. An ace from Jade Wolfer pushed the Saxons up 22-14. Oneonta cut the lead to four before Cara Bratthauer sent in the final kill.
Oneonta continues the COugar Clash on Saturday, facing Hunter at 1 p.m. and Misericordia at 3 p.m.
