Boxscore
ITHACA, N.Y. – The Cornell volleyball team defeated Columbia in straight sets, 25-18, 25-15, 25-18, to earn its first Ivy League win of the season this afternoon in Newman Arena.
Deveney Pula led the team with 10 kills and just four errors on 27 attempts for a .222 kill percentage, while Alessa Cekauskas posted nine kills and just three errors on 24 attempts (.250). Jordan Reeder ran the offense with 34 assists, while Megan Mushovic led the team with 12 digs. Juliana Rodgers also had a solid game with seven kills and five total blocks.
Columbia (9-5, 1-1) was led by Megan Gaughn’s 10 kills, while Kelsey Mussleman handed out 23 assists. Libero Ellie Thomas posted a game-high 19 digs.
The Lions jumped out to an early 11-7 lead in the first set, but the Big Red stormed back to knot the game at 12-12 thanks to a pair of kills by Cekauskas, as well as kills from Pula and Alice Cope. The teams tied three more times before Cornell used a 5-1 scoring run to build a 20-16 lead. Leading 22-18, the Big Red closed out the first set with one kill each from Pula and Cekauskas and a service ace by Mushovic.
Cornell took a commanding 7-2 lead in the second set, thanks in large part to three kills from Cekauskas in the early going. The Lions fought its way back to within two points, 9-7, but the Big Red used a decisive 9-2 scoring run to go up, 18-9. From there, Cornell rolled to the 25-15 victory.
In the final set of the match, the teams battled back and forth to a 13-13 score before the Big Red began to pull away. Kills from Cekauskas, Jessica Misse and Pula helped Cornell take a 17-14 lead, but the Lions pulled back within one-point, 17-16. A pair of kills by Pula sparked a 7-1 Big Red scoring run, and from there, Cornell took the 25-18 win.
Cornell is back in action next week, as it remains in Ithaca to play host to Harvard on Friday, Oct. 9 at 7 p.m., and Dartmouth on Saturday, Oct. 10 at 4 p.m.