Niagara University, N.Y.—The Niagara volleyball team notched its biggest win of the season on Sunday afternoon at the Gallagher Center as they defeated Marist who was 9-1 in MAAC play and sat atop the MAAC standings.
First Set
The Purple Eagles and Red Foxes came out of the locker room and played an even opening set, there were four lead changes and eight different times in which the score was tied. After 40 points in the set, the teams were tied at 20, Marist took five of the next six points to take the set 25-21. Both teams hit over .200 in the set as Marist was at .227 and Niagara at .214.
Niagara had 15 kills in the set with Lexi Bapst leading the way with a set high six kills. Laryssa Imbuzeiro had three kills while Janiah Robinson, Jenna Vogen, and Cassie Seminoff all had two kills. Niagara had three blocks in the opening set as Robinson and Vogen each had two block assists, Imbuzeiro and Seminoff both had a block assist as well.
Second Set
Niagara took the early lead in the set, but the teams would have seven ties in the set. The lead changed just twice. Niagara took the lead after the score was tied at 10 and never looked back. The Purple Eagles took a 13-10 lead which forced a Marist timeout. Out of the timeout, the Purple Eagles retained their three-point lead as Marist called their second timeout with the score 20-17 in favor of Niagara. Niagara closed out the set with a 25-20 advantage to tie the match at one.
The Purple Eagles had 22 points in the second set as Marist had just three unforced errors. Seminoff had a team high six kills in the set while Vogen had three. Payton Lee and Kylie Blessing had two with Robinson, Imbuzeiro, and Bapst all having one kill. Along with her two kills, Blessing had seven assists along with three service aces. Vogen and Imbuzeiro combined for two blocks in the set. Casey Brown had five assists in the set while Seminoff had three assists.
Third Set
With the match tied at one, the Purple Eagles came out in the third set and took a 5-1 lead. Niagara never trailed in the set, Marist tied the match at five, eight, and 10 but they were never able to go up on the Purple Eagles. Following the 10-10 tie, Niagara took a 15-11 lead. Niagara had a lead as large as seven multiple times late in the set and took the set by a score o f 25-18.
Just like the second set, Niagara had 22 points as Marist had just three unforced errors in the set. Imbuzeiro and Seminoff both had a team high 4.5 points in the set, Imbuzeiro had two kills and three block assists while Seminoff had four kills and one block assist. Both Blessing and Brown had seven assists in the set while five different Purple Eagles also had digs. Bella Peroni, Bapst, and Seminoff all had five digs in the set. The Purple Eagles hit .258 in the set while limiting Marist to a .079 hitting percentage.
Fourth Set
Marist took the opening point of the set but that would be the only time that they would lead in the set. Niagara went on a 3-0 run to take an early 3-1 lead. The teams would be tied five times, but the Purple Eagles never gave up the lead. With the score 9-6 in favor of Niagara, Marist called a timeout, after the timeout Niagara built their lead to 12-9. Marist challenged a call with the score 12-9 but were unsuccessful. Following the challenge, Niagara took a 17-12 lead which forced Marist to take their second timeout. The Purple Eagles closed out the set with a 25-17 win to take down the Red Foxes.
Six Purple Eagles had kills in the set with Bapst having a team high four. Seminoff, Imbuzeiro, and Vogen all had two while Brown and Robinson had one. Blessing had a set high eight assists while Brown added two. Lee teamed up with Imbuzeiro for a block while Vogen and Imbuzeiro also teamed up for a block. As a team Niagara hit .312 in the final set with 12 kills on 32 attempts.
Niagara Notes
· Niagara improves to 7-3 in MAAC play this season as they have already matched their MAAC win amount from last season.
· The Purple Eagles are 6-1 this season at home which is the most home wins in a season since 2021 when they went 8-1.
· Niagara has won seven of their last eight matches. They have swept three of the last four MAAC weekends.
· Both Bapst and Seminoff had double-doubles against Marist. Bapst had 14 kills along with 15 digs while Seminoff also had 14 kills and 19 digs.
· The Purple Eagles hit .285 against the Red Foxes, it is the third straight match they have hit over .250 and it is the fifth time this season.
· Against Marist, the Purple Eagles had 11 blocks, it is the fourth time this season they have had double digit blocks. Niagara is second in the MAAC in blocks per set at 2.32 and tied for second in total blocks (144).
· Imbuzeiro is fourth in the MAAC in hitting percentage at .259 overall and third in the MAAC in conference play with a hitting percentage of .323 against MAAC teams.
· Imbuzeiro leads the conference in blocks with 1.35 per set and 84 total blocks. She had eight total blocks against Marist which is tied for third most in a match this season in the MAAC. Robinson is quickly climbing the list as she is fourth with .91 blocks per set, she has 31 total blocks which is 10th in the MAAC.
· Peroni had 14 digs against Marist and is second in the MAAC with 3.87 digs per set, she had 240 total digs and is fourth in the MAAC. Bapst is ninth in digs with 2.86 digs per set and 143 overall.
· Niagara sits solo in fourth place in the MAAC, two wins up on Iona who is 5-5.
Up Next
The Purple Eagles close out the four match homestand on Saturday and Sunday as they welcome Quinnipiac and Fairfield to the Gallagher Center. Both the Stags and Bobcats defeated the Purple Eagles earlier this season and sit atop the MAAC standings at 9-1.
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