A four-set win and straight-set loss opened the Buttermaker Tournament for the St. Lawrence University volleyball team at Muhlenburg College. It included a 3-1 win over Cedar Crest College, followed by a defeat at the hands of the host Mules.

The results bring their record to 5-3 on the season as they continue to work through non-conference play.

"We came out strong to dominate the first set but then lost our focus as our entire roster saw rotations," said Saints head coach Shelly Roiger regarding the Saints' triumph over Cedar Crest.

"We had several people make nice contributions in the win over Cedar Crest, but it took a set longer than it should have."

"In our second match, we really struggled defensively, both on the net and off," Roiger continued. "We weren't able to slow down their offense and we got stuck in a couple of rotations. We will reset, re-fuel, and come battle-ready for our two matches tomorrow with Liberty League play less than two weeks away."
 

---

Game 1: St. Lawrence 3, Cedar Crest 1 (25-14, 24-26, 25-22, 25-15)

The first set began at 6-6, before the Saints pulled away with a string of offense, ultimately leading them to a win of the opening set. They went on a 9-0 run, highlighted by three aces from Lily Snide, three kills by Araiza Acum-Santos. It gave St. Lawrence a nine-point lead. The Saints held their nine-point lead to win the match's opening set 25-14.

Cedar Crest would bounce back in a tough second set, edging the Saints by two. They played tightly, with neither team gaining significant lead until the Saints went up 20-15. But the Falcons found a groove late in the set, posting six straight points and rallying to win it 26-24.

They rode that momentum to an early 10-2 lead in the third, forcing the Saints to rally. St. Lawrence continued the roller coaster theme to the game, outscoring the Falcons 23-12 after that point to win the set by three points. The Saints capitalized on late Falcons attack errors and timely late kills from Acum-Santos, Bridget Gammons, and Maggie Layman for the win.

Cedar Crest again stuck with the Scarlet and Brown, but a strong St. Lawrence comeback made the difference once more, ultimately ending the match. With the score at 8-7 St. Lawrence, the Saints extended their lead to 11-7 off a Gammons kill and back-to-back service aces from Vanessa Latam. That began a 9-1 run that led the Saints to a 17-8 advantage – a lead they would not relinquish.
 

---

Game 2: St. Lawrence 0, Muhlenburg 3 (17-25, 17-25, 16-25)

In the second game of the back-to-back for the Saints, the Mules put together two straight offensive runs in the first part of the opening set to go up big. They had a 7-0 run and a 4-0 run and ended the stretch up 11-6 on St. Lawrence. They used another 4-0 stretch to go up 19-11 and not look back.

The Mules went up 7-3 early and kept that lead until the Saints came back in the mid portion of the set to tie it at 15-15 via a Gammons kill and four Mules attack errors. Muhlenberg then obtained 10 of the next 12 points to win the set.

Aside from a 1-1 tie early, the Mules led wire to wire in the third to end the straight-set match win.
 

---

Up Next:

The Saints wrap up the tournament Saturday with games against William Peace and Hunter.