LEWISBURG, Pa. – The Big Red volleyball team gave Oakland University all it could handle, but the Grizzlies went on to beat Cornell, and take the Bucknell Invitational title with a 3-1 victory (19-25, 20-25, 28-26, 16-25) this afternoon. For their efforts on the weekend, Carla Sganderlla and Kit McCarty were named to the All-Tournament team.
 
Cornell (5-4) was led by Sganderlla and Maddy Sroufe with 11 kills apiece, while McCarty and Jenna Phelps added nine and eight kills, respectively. Big Red senior setter Alyssa Phelps tallied 25 assists, while sophomore Gabby Goodall finished with 21. Freshman libero Lily Barber had a match-high 13 digs.
 
Oakland (8-6) had two players finish in double-figures – Melissa Deatsch (16) and Darien Bandel (10). Setter Jordan Lentz had 42 assists and libero Ali Gutschow tallied 10 digs.
 
The first set was a back and forth battle until four unanswered points put the Grizzlies up, 16-12. Cornell responded with a kill from Jenna Phelps and eventually knotted the game one last time at 17-17 on a service ace from Kiley McPeek. A kill from Bandel and a service ace from Sammy Condon restored a lead that Oakland would not relinquish en route to the 25-19 victory.
 
The second set was all Grizzlies, as Oakland scored the first four points and led wire-to-wire in the 25-20 win.
 
The Big Red stormed back in the third set, behind some strong hitting (.333) and big blocking. The teams fought through 12 ties to get to 15-15 when back-to-back Cornell blocks – the first from Sroufe and Jenna Phelps and the second from Alyssa and Jenna Phelps – followed by a kill from Sroufe, put the Big Red up, 18-15. Oakland responded with a 6-0 run to go up 21-18, but Cornell refused to go away and a kill from Sroufe put the Big Red back on track. Cornell tied the game at 24-24 and again at 26-26 before a block by Jenna Phelps and McCarty, followed by an Oakland attack error, handed the Big Red the 28-26 victory.
 
Unfortunately, Cornell could not carry the momentum into the fourth set, as the Grizzlies jumped out to a 7-1 lead and never looked back on its way to a 25-16 win.
 
Cornell opens up Ivy League play next weekend as it travels to New York City to take on Columbia on Saturday, Sept. 24 at 2 p.m.