ROCKVILLE CENTRE, N.Y. (Oct. 8, 2016) - It was a rough Saturday morning into afternoon for the Molloy College volleyball team as the Lions hosted both NYIT and Saint Rose in a tri-match at Quealy Gymnasium. The maroon and white were defeated in straight sets by both of their opponents, who also played a match with the Bears winning in three sets.

NYIT 3, Molloy 0 (25-22, 25-19, 25-22)
The first match of the day was a hotly contested East Coast Conference affair that went back and forth between the two sides despite the one-sided outcome. Molloy held leads in both the second and third sets against the defending NCAA East Region champions, but the Lions could not close out the best team in the conference standings in either game. Right-side hitter Danielle Williams (Alba, Texas) led the team and all players with 15 kills in the contest, but the rest of the team managed just 13 successful attacks combined between the remaining players on the side. Freshman setter Sophia Smith (Georgetown, Texas) dished out 26 assists while junior libero Dakota O'Neill (Long Beach, N.Y.) posted an 18-dig performance in the back row for the maroon and white. Middle blockers Devon Hagerstrom (Bethpage, N.Y.) and Valerie Wills (Laurelton, N.Y.) both contributed in the front row with five block assists apiece as the Lions managed nine total blocks (two solo, 14 assists) in an attempt to keep NYIT at bay. 

The Bears relied heavily on senior middle blocker Rachel Guida (Huntington, N.Y.) as she had 14 kills on a .423 hitting percentage while outside hitter Tiffany Verni (Patchogue, N.Y.) thundered home 11 kills in the victory for the visitors. Junior setter Allison Fowler (Centennial, Colo.) collected a double-double with 37 assists and 11 digs as junior libero Chessie Santeramo (Fremont, Calif.) added 16 digs in the back row. 

Saint Rose 3, Molloy 0 (25-11, 25-10, 25-20)
Saint Rose---coming off of a three-set loss in the middle contest of the tri-match---took it to Molloy early and often, and the final statistics heavily favored the Golden Knights. The visiting side from Albany had 41 total kills in just 87 attacking attempts with eight errors, good for a whopping .368 hitting percentage as a team. The maroon and white, on the other hand, struggled in the first two sets by hitting in the negatives; the Lions mustered a .182 clip on offense to finish the match in the positive side of the percentage calculator. Freshman Shannon Wren (Lynbrook, N.Y.) led the way with eight kills while Smith posted a five-kill, 18-assist effort with a .714 hitting percentage. Williams added five kills and O'Neill chipped in with ten digs of her own.

Saint Rose was bolstered by senior outside hitter Maryellen Devic (Orchard Park, N.Y.), who achieved a match-high 14 kills and also added 11 digs. Shayna Webber (Baldwinsville, N.Y.) and Stevie Schweitzer (Tampa, Fla.) also contributed with eight kills each as senior libero Samantha Atchinson (Alpalus, N.Y.) led the Golden Knights with 12 digs.

Molloy (4-16, 1-4 ECC) is back in action on Tuesday (Oct. 11) when the Lions host perennial East Region power Bridgeport at Quealy Gymnasium. The match is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m.