UAlbany Outlasts Colgate in Volleyball

Submitted by John Gilger

(Hamilton, NY) Kaleigh Durkett (El Dorado Hills, Calif.) and Casey Ritt (Colorado Springs, Colo.) each posted double figured kill totals, but it wasn’t enough as visiting UAlbany edged Colgate 23-25, 25-19, 26-24, 25-23 in a non conference volleyball clash between instate rivals, Wednesday (Sept. 30) evening at Cotterell Court.

Durket posted a match-high 17 kills to go along with 13 digs, while Ritt hammered down 14 kills herself in the loss to the Great Danes. Colgate fell to 4-9 overall.

“I was very proud of how we improved with two days of practice in dramatic fashion,” said Colgate head coach Ryan Baker. “Our blocking looked the best it has all season.

“The players are very disappointed because they realize they had an opportunity to beat a very good Albany team,” continued Baker. “If we continue to progress, like we did this evening, I’m confident that we will have success in the Patriot League.”

Colgate jumped out to an early three point advantage in the opening set at 7-4 only to have the Great Danes rally back with an 8-2 run to take a 12-10 lead. After back and forth action and several ties, the Raiders took a one point lead after a UAlbany service error. Meghan Fanta (Hillsboro, Wisc.) closed out the set with an ace. Durket came out hot in the opener with eight kills.

Down two games to one, the Raiders came out charged in the fourth game and grabbed what appeared to be a commanding 8-2 lead behind the serve of Logan Keala (Kaneohe, Hawaii) who served five consecutive points and then three more by Devon Applegate (Davidson, N.C.). However, UAlbany methodically shaved into the lead and eventually knotted the contest at 14-14. The Great Danes then would reel off four of the next five points to gain a three-point advantage at 18-15. Colgate answered and eventually took the lead at 22-21 on a kill by Maureen Colligan (Odessa, Fla.). After a kill by Blaire Safir (Oakland, Calif.) gave the Raiders a two-point cushion, Albany closed out the match with three kills and a service ace.

Fanta dished out 25 assists in the loss and moved into ninth on the all-time Patriot League assist charts with 3,572. She enters this weekend’s play 43 away from passing former Bucknell standout Shannon Pitsch for eighth.

The Raiders’ had a strong blocking performance with 10 team blocks on the evening. Ritt led the charge with a team-high seven. Safir tied her career high with four block assists, while Colligan chipped in two block solos and a block assist.

Applegate, the Patriot League’s top digger, posted 17 digs on the evening to lead the way. Along with Durket’s 13 digs, Keala added 11.

UAlbany, which improved to 9-8 overall, was paced by Valerie Sourbeer’s team-high 15. Casey Wright and Hillary White added 13 and 12 kills respectively in the win. Great Dane libero, Laurie Gonzalez collected 31 digs from the back row.

Colgate returns to Patriot League Conference action this weekend with a pair of road matches. The Raiders will tangle with Navy, Friday evening, Oct. 2 in Annapolis before taking on American Saturday, Oct. 3.

UAlbany Outlasts Colgate in Volleyball

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