OLD WESTBURY, NY --- (
www.YORKATHLETICS.com) York College women's volleyball saved its strongest push for the final set Thursday evening, but the SUNY Old Westbury Panthers (4-3) held on for a three-set victory at the Clark Athletic Center. The Panthers took the opening two sets, 25-9 and 25-12, before the Cardinals battled back in the third, ultimately falling 25-23 in a non-conference setback to wrap up a six-match road trip.
First Set Breakdown
- The Panthers raced out to a 5-0 lead before York settled in and pulled within four (6-2).
- Aces by MaliaJewel Bembry-Morris and Zia Lefebvre helped York score five points during an 11-point stretch, cutting the deficit to 10 (19-9).
- Old Westbury answered with six unanswered points to close out the opening set, 25-9.
Second Set Breakdown
- Back-to-back kills by Lefebvre off feeds from Simranjit Kaur gave York an early jolt, putting the Cardinals ahead 2-0.
- Trailing 3-1, the Panthers ripped off 11 straight points to take control of the set.
- A kill from Veronica Estevez stopped the Panther run before Old Westbury used a 5-1 spurt to extend its lead to 17-5.
- York answered with four of the next six points, capped by a kill from Jaslene Colon, to make it 19-9.
- Lefebvre added a kill for York's 12th, but Old Westbury closed out the set by taking six of the final nine points, securing the 25-12 win.
Third Set Breakdown
- A tightly contested third set saw York generate nine kills on 67 swings, seven more attempts than Old Westbury, as the Cardinals and Panthers finished even in aces (5-5) and blocks (1-1).
- Falling behind 5-1 early, York responded with an 11-1 scoring spree, sparked by a Lefebvre kill as she added three aces during the stretch.
- Old Westbury countered with a 10-3 run to grab hold of a 16-14 game.
- A key 4-0 spurt stretched the Panthers' advantage to 20-15.
- York roared back with a timely 7-1 surge, as three kills from Lefebvre and an ace by Widmaelle Drouillard pushed the Cardinals ahead, 22-21.
- Old Westbury answered with a 4-1 finish to claim the set, 25-23, after a late kill from Lefebvre evened the score at 23-all before a kill and an ace secured the Panthers' victory.
Leading The Cardinals
- Lefebvre led the Cardinals with a match-high nine kills on 21 swings, adding four aces and one solo block for 14 points while chipping in three digs.
- Kaur moved York's offensive attack with a career-best 12 assists.
- Drouillard served two aces and scooped a team-leading four digs
- Bembry-Morris nailed down three kills and contributed one ace and a block.
- Joeriza Moreno came up with three digs.
For Old Westbury
- Summer Brown paced the Panthers with 15 points, tallying eight kills on 16 attempts and seven aces.
- Kasey Coppola notched seven kills, while Nicole Zugnoni delivered seven aces, two kills and a block assist.
- Amaya McFadden registered six aces and three kills.
- Katia Gomez and Julia Brandes each dished out nine assists.
- Ava Cavanaugh anchored the Panthers defensively with a match-high eight digs.
Inside The Box Score
The Cardinals swung 60 times at a -.033 hitting percentage, while Old Westbury attacked on 57 occasions at a .281 clip. The Panthers held the advantage in points (51-24), kills (26-15), aces (22-7), total blocks (3-2), assists (22-12) and digs (24-16).
Up Next
York (1-7, 0-1 CUNYAC) returns to campus Tuesday (Oct. 6), opening a stretch of three home matches across its next four outings when the Cardinals welcome the Brooklyn College Bulldogs (3-5, 2-0 CUNYAC) for a CUNYAC showdown at 6 p.m. inside York College Gymnasium.
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