ONEONTA, N.Y. -- The Oneonta volleyball team shut out Hartwick in the Battle of the Hills for a 3-0 sweep on the road, Friday evening. Oneonta won all three sets over their city rivals by a score of 25-20. The win snapped the Red Dragons six-game skid in the Battle of the Hills and improved them to 4-10 this season, while the Hawks dropped to 5-7 overall.
"This was a team win tonight," Head Coach
Ashley Coyle stated. "The themes we have been working on throughout the season shined. Our ability to control our first contact, each set allowed our team to capitalize on offensive opportunities."
Junior
Shea Landversicht (Greenville, NY/Greenville) led Oneonta with 17.5 points, totaling the game-high 14 kills with an ace and 2.5 total blocks. Senior
Emma Morretta (Mahopac, NY/Mahopac) had nine kills and 1.5 total blocks for 10.5 points, while senior
Keira Welsh (Patchogue, NY/Patchogue-Medford) and sophomore
Lily Pugliese (Hopewell Junction, NY/John Jay) both recorded 7.5 points with seven kills and a block assist. Sophomore
Layla Pertchik (Saratoga Springs, NY/Saratoga Springs) finished with a season-high 37 assists, as she also had three aces, two kills, and two block assists for 6.0 points.
"Our ability to trust our offensive shots and terminate in transition lifted us through competitive rallies," Coach Coyle continued. "Each part of our game was consistent, composed, and disciplined. Throughout the sets, we maintained a level of confidence and belief in our abilities that led to our victory."Â
The first set was tied at seven until Morretta slammed in a kill and ignited a 10-3 rally for Oneonta to take a 17-10 lead. Sophomore
Corynna Manjos (Maplewood, NJ/Columbia) had two kills during the run while Landversicht had three kills before serving an ace to end the run. The Hawks got to within four, then Morretta recorded another kill to spark a 5-2 stretch that put the Red Dragons up 23-16. Hartwick tried to pull themselves back into the set, but a kill from Pugliese and a double block from Landversicht and Pertchik gave Oneonta the first set.
Sophomore
Cadence Meltz (Highland, NY/Highland) served two of her three aces from the match in the second set, as both teams traded points early on. Welsh then started a 5-1 run where Morretta spiked in two kills for the Red Dragons to go up 12-9. The match became tied at 12, and again at 16, before Pertichik tallied two kills while Landversicht and Welsh each had one to give the team a 20-18 edge. Hartwick had a double block to make it a one-point set, then Oneonta closed out the second set with a 5-1 rally where four different Red Dragons recorded a kill and senior
Lillian Slattery (Queensbury, NY/Queensbury) served an ace.
The Red Dragons used their momentum from the first two sets and jumped out to an 11-5 lead in the third set with three kills from Manjos, two from Landversicht, and two aces from Pertchik. Once the Hawks tied the match at 13, both teams went back-and-forth with each other and kept the game knotted at 19 all. Oneonta put the set, and the match, away with a 6-1 rally to win set three, 25-20. Pugliese had a pair of kills then, similar to set one, Pertchik and Landversicht had a double block for the final point.
Makella O'Neill led Hartwick with 10 kills for 10 points. Lucy Walker had 9.5 points with seven kills and 1.5 total blocks. Samantha Garback had five kills and two block assists for 6.0 points.
The Red Dragons are back in action on Friday, October 9, for the start of SUNYAC play against Potsdam at 6 pm at Dewar Arena.
