Lafayette College’s volleyball team (3-1 overall) started its 2024 campaign last Friday in Syracuse, New York.
There for the Salt City Classic Tournament, the Leopards faced out-of-conference opponents Le Moyne College (0-3 overall), Syracuse University (3-0 overall), Canisius University (2-2 overall) and the New Jersey Institute of Technology (1-4 overall).
The team kicked off the tournament playing against Le Moyne. Outside hitters senior Abby Nieporte and freshman Paige Chmura led the charge, the latter impressive in her Leopards debut with five kills and three block assists.
The Leopards showcased their defensive prowess, registering 22 blocks, with sophomore middle blocker Irelynd Lorenzen contributing seven of her own.
Setters freshman Mackenzie Calhoun and senior Anna Penman combined for 26 assists, steering Lafayette to a smooth victory in three sets.
“We were very disciplined in the first match and worked well as a team with everyone doing their job, which led to a clean sweep,” senior outside hitter Phoebe Glass said. “It felt really good in the moment, knowing that was our first game and set the standards for the season.”
Later on Friday, the Leopards faced host Syracuse. The Maroon and White struggled against Syracuse’s powerful offense, losing the first two sets by scores of 25-13 and 25-19, respectively. The Leopards recovered with a strong third-set performance led by key kills from outside hitters sophomore Ally Feczko and junior Carol Ulichney.
Despite the junior duo of middle blocker Hannah Ehrich-Pollock and Ulichney combining for 17 kills throughout the match, the Orange would end the match in the fourth set, winning 3-1.
“We set the standard in preseason of always taking at least one set from a team, regardless of who it is, so it felt really good knowing we achieved our goal,” senior middle blocker Natasha Zorbas said. “We also stayed strong and aggressive the whole time throughout the game, so even with the loss, we were still happy with the outcome.”
Saturday provided the Leopards with an opportunity to bounce back against NJIT. Nieporte and sophomore outside hitter Emma Patmon were offensive standouts in the matchup, combining for 28 kills.
After losing two of the first three sets, the Leopards showed resilience to win the fourth set by a tight margin of 25-22. In the fifth and final set, the Maroon and White saw key contributions from Patmon, Lorenzen and Ehrich-Pollock to win 15-8, ultimately taking the match 3-2.
“It was a very proud moment for the team, knowing we can overcome adversity and be resilient when down to come out with a win in the fifth set,” Glass said. “We all aimed to keep positive mindsets throughout the match which helped us to victory.”
Lafayette closed out tournament play on Saturday afternoon with a 3-1 win against Canisius. Calhoun set a new career-high of 24 assists and three service aces.
Feczko and Ulichney led the offense with 10 and 11 kills, respectively. Lafayette’s strong service game, highlighted by Calhoun and sophomore setter Anna Van Wyk, was pivotal in securing their third win of the season.
“To come out with a win in four sets straight after a long five-set match felt really good and the energy was super high throughout the entire game,” Glass said. “We ended on a high.”
Ehrich-Pollock and Ulichney were named to the Salt City Classic All-Tournament Team. Ehrich-Pollock racked up 26 kills while hitting .333, the seventh-best in the Patriot League, and Ulichney notched 34 kills while hitting .295 across tournament play.
Ehrich-Pollock and Ulichney “had such strong performances this weekend, especially in their swing aggressiveness in the front row, as well as blocking,” Zorbas said. “They also were very vocal on and off the court in being supportive teammates and both currently have lost voices to prove it.”
The Leopards return to action today at the VCU Invitational, facing against Winthrop University at 2 p.m., followed by a Saturday match against Virginia Tech.