FREDONIA, N.Y. - Hilbert College Women's Volleyball faced off against the SUNY Fredonia Blue Devils in their final non-conference match on the 2024 game schedule.
Fredonia emerged victorious, winning 3-1 in a well-fought contest, but the Hawks live-to-play another match.
Hilbert earned the No. 5 seed based on the outcome of today's Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference matches. With a Pitt-Greensburg loss to Pitt-Bradford, the Hawks finished in a two-way tie with La Roche at 3-5. Yet, Hilbert held the tie-breaker over the Redhawks having just beaten them in a 5-match October 28th.
This marks the first time in 10 years, dating back to 2013, where the Women's Volleyball program is making an appearance in the postseason tournament.
Final Score:
- Hilbert: 25, 18, 22, 16
- Fredonia: 11, 25, 25, 25
Match Recap:
- The first set saw Hilbert get off to a strong start, winning 25-11, with Molly McKinnon leading the way with 4 kills and Katie Kociszewski adding 2 blocks. However, Fredonia bounced back in set 2, winning 25-18 thanks to an aggressive offensive surge that helped them take control.
- Fredonia won three straight sets after dropping the opening one, dominating the latter part of the match with consistent play in sets 2 through 4.
Key Players:
Hilbert:
Fredonia:
- Kylie O'Brien was a standout, contributing 15 kills and 18 digs, as well as 4 service aces.
- Erin Callahan added 9 kills and 2 aces, while Amaya Lewczyk also contributed 6 kills.
- Olivia Boswell had an excellent match with 21 assists, while Maeve Musielak had 13 assists and 17 digs.
Team Stats Comparison:
- Kills: Hilbert 36, Fredonia 41
- Aces: Hilbert 6, Fredonia 10
- Blocks: Hilbert 5, Fredonia 3
- Assists: Hilbert 33, Fredonia 37
- Digs: Hilbert 83, Fredonia 86
Set-by-Set Breakdown:
- Set 1: Hilbert dominated, hitting .267 compared to Fredonia's negative -.073 hitting percentage, winning 25-11.
- Set 2: Fredonia turned the tide, hitting .208 while Hilbert struggled with a .091 hitting percentage, winning 25-18.
- Set 3: Both teams battled closely, but Fredonia pulled away in the end to win 25-22. Fredonia's offensive and defensive consistency gave them the advantage.
- Set 4: Fredonia closed out the match with a strong 25-16 win, hitting .195 to Hilbert's .027.
How It Happened:
Hilbert started strong, their struggles in the following sets, especially in offense and serving, allowed Fredonia to dominate as the match progressed. While Hilbert's efforts were led by McKinnon and Kociszewski, but Fredonia's powerful offense, led by O'Brien and Boswell, proved too much to overcome.
Up Next:
The 5-20 Hawks earned the 5th seed (3-5) in the 2024 AMCC tournament and will travel to #4 Mount Aloysius College (13-14, 5-3 AMCC) for a Wednesday, November 13th playoff game.
Just last Saturday, Hilbert made the same trip to Cresson, Pa for their final AMCC match of the season. The Mounties escaped with a 25-22, 28-26, 25-16 three set victory but enter the tourney with a recent 3-set loss under their belt against Alfred State today.
