ITHACA, N.Y. – In a night that was meant to celebrate the Cornell volleyball seniors, senior middle blocker Jada Stackhouse gave the crowd a ton to cheer about, leading the Big Red to a 3-1 (25-16, 19-25, 25-15, 25-19) victory over Brown on Saturday evening at Newman Arena in Ithaca, N.Y.
In her last match at Newman Arena for her career, Stackhouse went out with a bang, recording a team-high and season-best 13 kills on 24 attempts for an impressive .542 hitting percentage. Stackhouse cleaned up practically everything at the net, taking advantage of multiple Brown defensive miscues and turning them into easy kills. She was a blocking machine, notching three solo blocks and six block assists and helping the Big Red out-block Brown, 12.0 to 9.0.
Madison Baptiste joined Stackhouse in recording double-digit kills, tallying 12 kills and 13 digs for her fourth-straight double-double. Baptiste's consistency as the season has progressed has been impressive, and she has become someone that the Big Red rely heavily on. Senior Jenna Phelps (9 kills), Paige Becker (8 kills), and Lauren Stubbs (8 kills) all had solid performances, making the depth of the Cornell roster evident. As a team, the Big Red out-hit Brown, .257 to .099, never allowing the Bears to get comfortable.
Zoe Chamness had herself a night, recording a season-best and match-high 29 assists. Chamness added 11 digs to post a double-double, including a spectacular dig that she made with her foot from the floor. Emma Worthington added 15 assists and five digs.
Lily Barber made the most of her final night in Newman Arena, collecting a match-best 18 digs and five assists. Barber will leave Cornell as one of the best liberos in program history, becoming only the second Big Red student-athlete to amass 1,000 digs and 300 assists for her career (Jen Strazza '92).
Several other Big Red seniors excelled on Saturday as well, including Samanta Arenas, Sophia Beaudoin, and Katie Randolph. Arenas posted nine digs and notched a pair of kills, and Beaudoin and Randolph helped hold down the back row.
With the victory, the Big Red improve to 16-5 on the season and 9-3 in Ivy League play.
The Big Red will close out the regular season next weekend when it plays its final two Ivy League matches at Harvard on Friday, Nov. 15 at 7 p.m. and Dartmouth on Saturday, Nov. 16 at 5 p.m.
