Araiza Acum-Santos and
Vanessa Latam recorded career-highs, as the St. Lawrence University volleyball team claimed a 3-2 victory over SUNY Potsdam on Friday afternoon in Potsdam.
Acum-Santos finished the five-set match with 21 kills, while Latam tallied 45 assists on the afternoon.
Vivian Zymeck added 20 kills and 15 digs for the Scarlet and Brown, while
Kori Meissner recorded four service aces.
The Bears took an early lead in the first set of the afternoon, but the Saints scored four straight to bring the set within one to make it 11-10. However, Potsdam continued to hold a slight advantage until two attack errors from the Bears gave the Saints an 18-17 edge. An ace from Latam tied it up 22-22, but the Bears regained the lead on a kill from Alyssa Adams and held on for the 25-22 set victory.
The Saints came out swinging in set two, pulling ahead to a 12-6 lead over the Bears. St. Lawrence held the lead for the remainder of the set, climbing to a 19-14 lead and finishing it off 25-19 on a kill from Acum-Santos.
Potsdam controlled the early play in the third set, building a 10-5 advantage on a kill from Kendall Jones. The Bears finished the set on a 7-2 run for the 25-17 win and a 2-1 match advantage.
After a back-and-forth battle to start the fourth set, the Saints edged the Bears 10-9 on an error. Potsdam worked its way back into the lead, posting a 15-12 edge. St. Lawrence rallied to tie it up 23-23 and force the fifth set with a 25-23 victory in the fourth.
The Saints grinded out a 15-13 win in the fifth set, claiming the win off back-to-back kills from Zymeck.
"Every time we play Potsdam, it's a dogfight," said head coach
Shelly Roiger. "It doesn't matter who graduated, what newcomers have joined the team, or what any statistics are on paper, it's always a four or five set match. We had our backs pinned against the wall, being down 12-18 in set four after already being down 2-1 in sets, and there was minimal room for error. We were able to gut out the fourth set and then the fifth set was just a trade off of points down the stretch. I am so proud of our team's fight and grit that they showed to persevere. This match was certainly not our prettiest volleyball of the season, but the toughness they showed was impressive. We had a lot of young players playing like seniors and yet it was our seniors who put the team in position to finish and ultimately walk out with the victory. This is the fourth five-set match for us of the season out of six matches total, so recovery will be key for us with a challenging day at Hamilton tomorrow, while facing two teams who will prepare us well for Liberty League play starting next week."
Adams led the Bears with 18 kills and 12 digs, while Sophia Layer tallied 36 assists and four service aces.
With the win, the Saints improved to 2-4 on the season, while Potsdam fell to 1-5.
St. Lawrence will travel to Clinton, N.Y. for the Hamilton Triad tomorrow, September 16. The Saints play Williams at 2:30 and will look for a rematch victory over Hamilton at 5 p.m.
Â
