Senior Natalie Piper had 18 kills and a career-high seven service aces, as the St. Lawrence volleyball team defeated Bard 3-0 on Saturday afternoon in Ronald T. Burkman Gymnasium.

The victory was Shelly Roiger's 200th win as the St. Lawrence head coach, making her the first coach in program history to eclipse that milestone.

The Saints looked to set the tone early and jumped out to an 11-3 advantage. The Raptors were never able to claw back, and St. Lawrence took the first set 25-13.

The Saints looked like they would replicate that performance again in the second set, jumping out to a 16-10 lead, but seven straight Bard points, which included three Saints' attacking errors, gave Bard the lead, 17-16. A Piper kill broke up the Raptor run, but a Saints' service error again gave Bard the lead at 18-17. This would be the last point St. Lawrence would drop in this set, as they closed out the set with eight straight points, which included five service aces for Piper to take the win 25-18.

In the third set, it was Bard that took control. They led 18-14 and looked to push the match into a fourth set, the Saints scored eight of the next nine points, which included three Piper kills, to take the lead 22-19. Each team successfully got the sideout for the next six points, and a Kreppein unassisted kill gave the Saints the set, 25-22.


"This was definitely not one of our better matches of the season," Roiger said. "We were sloppy and lacked focus during much of the match, but we were able to pull things together when needed. I'm proud of the team for their comeback during the third set that sealed the match win instead of dragging it out into four sets or beyond. Annika Kreppein had another great day with her hitting efficiency, and Natalie Piper continues to bring contributions to the court in all areas."

Junior setter Allie Posnick had 21 assists and two service aces for the Saints. Libero Reagan Collier-Hogan added 12 digs and two aces. Kreppein contributed 11 kills and eight digs.

Bard was led by Emily Smith's eight kills, Puja Clements 11 digs, and Adi David's 17 assists.

The Saints led Bard in aces (12-4), assists (32-19), and kills (39-21). Bard had five blocks to St. Lawrence's two.

"At the end of the day, a win in the conference is always something to appreciate and we will do just that," Roiger said. "We're looking forward to hosting Potsdam and hopefully celebrating another great day for the Saints in our home match on Tuesday."

Records: St. Lawrence (9-8, 2-3), Bard (5-10, 1-3)
Next: vs. Potsdam on October 12 at 7 p.m. in Canton, N.Y.