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Canisius University Athletics

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Bree Long gets the Canisius volleyball offense started with a dig in a home match against Iona on March 21, 2021 in Buffalo, N.Y.
Tony Militello
0
Iona Iona 3-3,3-3 MAAC
3
Winner Canisius Canis 5-2,5-2 MAAC
Iona Iona
3-3,3-3 MAAC
0
Final
3
Canisius Canis
5-2,5-2 MAAC
Winner
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 F
Iona Iona 21 17 13 (0)
Canisius Canis 25 25 25 (3)
1
Iona Iona 3-4,3-4 MAAC
3
Winner Canisius Canis 6-2,6-2 MAAC
Iona Iona
3-4,3-4 MAAC
1
Final
3
Canisius Canis
6-2,6-2 MAAC
Winner
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Iona Iona 10 25 23 19 (1)
Canisius Canis 25 23 25 25 (3)

Game Recap: Volleyball |

Volleyball Sweeps Iona at Home

The Canisius volleyball team swept its MAAC doubleheader with Iona Sunday afternoon at the Koessler Athletic Center. 

The Golden Griffins controlled the entire first match of the day over the Gaels, winning all three sets to post a 3-0 win (25-20, 25-17, 25-13). 

In the nightcap the Blue & Gold continued their stellar play claiming the first set, but Iona answered back in the second. Canisius would win the final two sets of the match, to secure the 3-1 victory (25-10, 23-25, 25-23, 25-19). The Griffs are now 6-2 on the season, while Iona slipped to 3-4 with the pair of defeats.

MATCH ONE RECAP
After a back-and-forth start the afternoon, Canisius would swing the momentum in its favor, holding a 15-13 edge over the Gaels into the media timeout. Following the timeout, Canisius claimed three-straight points, capped off by a kill courtesy of Ella Loussia, which forced Iona to call a timeout. The Griffs closed out the first set of the contest behind three kills from Loussia as well as Giulia La Longa with a kill of her own. 

After falling behind in the second set 8-5, Canisius would spark a 6-1 scoring run courtesy of two kills each from Hannah Nelson and La Longa, as well as kills by Rachel Kinney, Elle Shult and Camila Vazquez, forcing a Iona timeout. After the break Iona, sparked a surge rattling off four consecutive points, which prompted a Canisius timeout. In the latter half of the set, Canisius outscored the Gaels 11-4, taking a 2-0 advantage into the third. 

Canisius jumped out to an early 8-2 lead in the final set of the contest, with kills coming from Loussia, Shult and Vazquez. Iona would stop the momentum thanks to a 9-4 surge capped off by a kill from Jen Soto, forcing Canisius to call a timeout. Out of that timeout leading 12-11, Canisius would rattle off six consecutive points, which included two kills each from Nelson and Loussia. 

Canisius would use a 13-2 scoring run to close out the third set and claim the first match of the afternoon with the Gaels, winning the final set 25-13. 

The Blue and Gold were led by Loussia and Nelson, who powered the Canisius attack that hit .260 (45-13-123), with 12 and 10 kills, respectively. Vazquez and Kinney would also contributed two the winning efffort with seven kills each.

Sophomore libero Bree Long led Canisius with 20 digs, her third consecutive contest with 20-plus digs. Kinney and Ashley Kekeisen would add 12 and 11 kills, as Kekeisen led the Griffs with 23 assists. 

MATCH TWO RECAP
Canisius stormed out to a quick start in the nightcap, scoring eight of the first nine points, fueled by two Ella Loussia kills. The Gaels struggled to get things going in their favor in the first set, much to the liking of Canisius. The Griffs continued their momentum from the first match, to close out the opening set with the 25-10 victory. 

In the second set, the two teams battled back and forth with Iona running out to an 18-10 advantage, their largest lead in any set on Sunday. Following the Canisius timeout, the Griffs responded to the sluggish start with a 4-0 scoring run, capped off by a service ace courtesy of Long, forcing the Gaels to call a timeout in order to stop the Blue and Gold's momentum. 

Following an attack error by Canisius that gave Iona the 19-14 edge, Canisius rattled off four consecutive points, starting with a Loussia kill and ending with a service ace from Shult. To finish the second set, Iona secured the 25-23 victory on back-to-back kills by Jaime Smith and Cassandra Patsos. 

To start the third set of the matchup with the Gaels, Iona raced out to a 14-10 lead over Canisius. The Blue and Gold answered back with a 5-1 swing, getting two kills from Loussia as well as service aces by Nelson and Long. After Iona took the lead at 16-15, six consecutive points by the Griffs gave the home squad a 21-16 edge. Canisius closed out the third set by scoring back-to-back points by way of a Callie Chamulak kill and an attack error by the Gaels, to claim the set 25-23. 

In the fourth and final set, Iona scored the first six points forcing Canisius to an early timeout in the frame to slow the momentum. Coming out of the break, Canisius would kick start their own 6-0 run to knot the score at 6-6. 

With the score 18-17 in favor of Canisius, the Griffs made another 6-0 run in the set to take a 24-17 advantage with match-point approaching. The Blue and Gold would finish the doubleheader sweep of the Gaels closing out the fourth set with a kill courtesy of Shult. 

Canisius' attack was led by Loussia for the second time of the afternoon, as she posted 15 kills, helping the Griffs hit .231 (47-13-147) in the nightcap. 

The Griffs had four players record double-digit dig performances in the match, led by 24 from Long. Nelson, Kinney and Kekeisen would tally 21, 17, and 16 digs, respectively. Kekeisen paced the passing attack with a match-high 26 assists. 

Iona was led by Kiarra Roth's 14 kills, as the Gaels attack that hit at a .094 clip (44-28-171). Maile Powell led Iona with 18 assists in the losing effort. 

Head Coach Shannon Thompson's Comments
"The girls came out with lots of energy and we started strong and finished strong. We executed our game plan. We talked about how we could beat Iona and the girls came out and executed what we wanted. We talked about playing as a team, regardless of who was on the court or who was on the bench. Win or lose, we were going to do it as a team." 

"It's definitely a tough road having to play Friday and Sunday. We wanted to come out and play strong because regardless of how your body feels, you have to show up and play every match. We know we are at our best when we are energetic and communicating well, and you saw that today." 

"For everybody it is obviously always easier to play at home because you don't have to travel, but our girls do a great job of showing up and no matter where we play they're gonna do well." 

"Next weekend, across the board for the school Niagara is always a big rival. For me not being here in the past, I'm taking it as a typical game, but for the girls they definitely feel that rivalry there. No matter who we are playing, we tell them to take it one step at a time and one point at a time, regardless of who is across the net. We just have to focus on our side of things and play our game" 

GAME NOTES
• With today's sweep over Iona, Canisius trims the Gaels' lead in the all-time series to 27-22.
• Canisius extended its winning streak at home inside the Koessler Athletic Center to seven straight. The last defeat for the Griffs on the home court was November 9, 2019 when they fell to Siena in five sets.
• This marks the second straight season where Canisius has won six of its first eight MAAC contests. 
• The Griffs improved to 5-0 on the season when they outhit their opponents, as well as improving to 4-0 when claiming the first set.
• With her two 20-plus dig efforts on Sunday, Long has eclipsed the mark in 16 collegiate matches. She has secured double-digit digs in 33 of her 37 matches at Canisius. 

Up Next
Canisius returns to the floor next Sunday afternoon, when they travel to face off with "Battle of the Bridge" rival Niagara. Game times in Lewiston, N.Y., are slated for 12 and 5 p.m.
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