Women’s Volleyball Swept By Oswego State, 3-0

AURORA, N.Y. – In their first game in program history, the Wells College women's volleyball team posted a 3-0 loss at the hands of the Lakers of Oswego State University Friday evening at the Frances Tarlton Farenthold Field House. With the loss, the Express fall to 0-1 on the young season while the Lakers improve to 1-0 following their first non-conference victory of the season.

With the first-ever women's volleyball game at Wells College in the books, the team becomes the 16th NCAA Division III varsity sport that the school offers. Last year, the men's volleyball program was the 15th program added to the college's athletic portfolio and Head Coach Richard Gary enters his second season as coach of both teams.

"I'm pleased with the effort, if not the result," explained Gary following the team's inaugural defeat. "This is the kind of hot and cold match that is to be expected from a first year program.  They're still learning how to work together, maintain a consistent effort, and incorporate a lot of new ideas into their games.

"That being said, we're finding a defensive rhythm already, and there are plenty of bright points in our transition game.  We'll have to learn to be a bit more aggressive, attack with more purpose, and to stay fluid throughout long points, but all of that takes time, and there was progress every set," concluded Gary.

After trailing by a 3-0 score in the first set, freshman outside hitter Gina Cairns (Delhi, N.Y.) recorded the program's first ever kill and point. Despite trailing by a 13-to-3 margin near the midpoint of the first set, the Express went on a five point run, culminated by a kill by freshman Zakarra Butts (Cortland, N.Y.) that was assisted by setter Taryn Heath (Homer, N.Y.). The Lakers, however, used Stephanie Bailey's five kills alongside eight Express errors en route to a 25-15 opening set victory.

In the second set, the Express opened up an 8-3 lead on the Lakers, capped by kills from Cairns and Butts. With the score at 13-7, however, the Lakers rallied for 15 straight points thanks to server Sabrina Sutton's five service aces coupled with the Express' seven attacking errors. Cumulatively, the Lakers needed only six kills to convert their second consecutive 25-15 win.

In the third set, the Express again maintained a tie in the early goings. With the score locked in at seven apiece, the Lakers' server Kelsey Dillon initiated 10 straight points. During that span, the Express made five errors while Dillon hammered home two service aces. With the score at 20-13, the Lakers ran off five straight points to collect their first victory of the season in three sets.

Cumulatively, Butts led all Express attackers with eight kills as opposed to only three errors for a team-leading .312 hitting percentage. Heath set up 16 Wells College kills, leading the team in assists. Defensively, both Cairns and freshman middle hitter Katie Curtin (Cassville, N.Y.) led the team with 11 digs apiece. For the Lakers, Bailey led the charge with eight kills while setter Kara Michelson put up 10 assists. Defensively, the Lakers' Morgan Lavner posted a team-best seven digs.

PROGRAM FIRSTS
First Kill – Cairns
First Assist – Heath
First Service Ace – Courtney Wein (Martville, N.Y.)
First Dig – Nicole Loeven (Pawling, N.Y.)
First Attack – Loeven
First Serve – Curtin
First Starting Rotation – Butts, Cairns, Katie Curtin, Taryn Heath, Leilani Yasutake (Germantown, N.Y.), Wein, libero Loeven

The Express return to action Saturday, Sept. 1 as they travel to the campus of SUNY Canton to take part in the SUNY Canton tournament. Wells College will face-off against Castleton State College in a 10:00 a.m. contest and Green Mountain College in an 11:30 a.m. tilt. Stay up to date with the latest news directly from the Wells College athletic department by "liking" us on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/WellsExpress) and subscribing to our Twitter account (http://www.twitter.com/WellsExpress).