ITHACA, N.Y. – There's no place like home, and the Cornell volleyball team will get to experience that firsthand for the next three weekends, as the Big Red prepares to host Columbia on Saturday, Oct. 23 at 2 p.m. at Newman Arena in Ithaca, N.Y. in what will be the first of a five-match home stand to open the second half of Ivy League play.
Game Information:
Cornell vs. Columbia
DATE/TIME: Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021 at 2 p.m.
SITE: Newman Arena – Ithaca, N.Y.
RECORDS: Cornell 5-10, 1-6 Ivy League / Columbia 5-12, 2-5 Ivy League
BROADCAST: ESPN+ (es.pn/3plFehQ)
STATS: cornellbigred.com (cornellbigred.com/sidearmstats/wvball/summary)
GAME NOTES
What's on Tap:
• Cornell can plant its roots in Newman Arena for the next three weekends, as the Big Red hosts Columbia on Saturday at 2 p.m. in what will be the first of five-straight home matches to open the second half of Ivy League play.
• The second round of conference action presents a new slate of opportunities for the Big Red, who holds a 1-6 Ivy League record after the first group of conference bouts.
• This weekend's match will be broadcast on ESPN+, along with every one of Cornell's Ivy League contests for the remainder of the season. ESPN+ is available to fans in the U.S. for $4.99/event, $6.99/month, or $69.99/year (http://plus.espn.com/). A similar international platform at the same price point is available for fans outside of the U.S., featuring both live and archived games.
Last Time Out:
• The Big Red dropped a pair of Ivy League contests to Harvard, 3-1 (25-22, 25-20, 16-25, 25-19), and Dartmouth, 3-1 (25-19, 25-14, 23-25, 25-20), on the road last weekend.
• Senior middle blocker Casey Justus continues to be someone that Cornell can lean on, leading the Big Red in kills for the fifth-straight match against the Crimson with 11 while also posting the team high in blocks with five (one solo, four assisted). The contest also marked the fourth-consecutive match that Justus hit at least .500.
• Freshman middle blocker Camryn Carlo has come into her own over the first half of Ivy League play, collecting nine kills on 17 attempts to hit .412 with four blocks (one solo, three assisted) against Harvard. Carlo leads the team in blocks per set (1.00) through the team's seven conference matches, while ranking second in total blocks (18.0) to Justus, who has posted 19.0.
• The senior class carried Cornell against Dartmouth as Madison Baptiste (14), Jillienne Bennett (13), Avery Hanan (nine), and Justus (seven) accounted for 43 of Cornell's 50 kills. The group also collected 10 of the Big Red's 14 blocks, with Bennett and Justus notching three apiece and Hanan and Baptiste stuffing a pair of Big Green attackers.
• M. Baptiste filled the stat sheet against Dartmouth, adding 16 digs for a double-double and a pair of aces to go along with her 14 kills and two blocks. It marked the ninth time this season that Baptiste amassed double-digit kills.
• Emma Worthington posted match-highs in assists (32) and digs (20) for her ninth dig-assist double-double of the year against the Big Green.
About Columbia:
• Columbia sits in a three-way tie for fifth place in the Ivy League with Dartmouth and Penn after the first rotation of conference action, holding a 2-5 conference and 5-12 overall record after dropping a mid-week nonconference matchup with Rider, 3-1, on Wednesday night.
• The Lions snapped a five-match losing skid last weekend after splitting its matches with Dartmouth and Harvard, as Columbia fell to the Big Green, 3-0, before picking up a big sweep, 3-0, of Harvard on the Crimson's home court at the Malkin Athletic Center.
• After losing to Rider on Wednesday, Columbia enters Saturday's contest having lost six of its last seven matches.
• Noelle Foster led Columbia in the team's victory over Harvard, posting a team-high 16 kills and hitting .484 on the night. Foster has been the guiding force behind the Columbia attack this season, leading the conference in kills per set (4.00) and points per set (4.36). Those numbers currently sit 45th and 71st, respectively, in Division I.
• Cadence Gronski has been a consistent setter for the Lions, ranking second in the Ivy League and 31st nationally in assists per set (10.53). She is a key reason why Columbia ranks second in the conference and 36th in Division I as a team in assists per set (12.55).
• Emily Teehan ranks among the top-10 in the conference in kills per set (ninth, 2.97).Together, Teehan and Foster are forces to be reckoned with.
• Libero Vanessa Pan, who posted 31 digs and three service aces when Cornell faced Columbia earlier this season, sits fifth in the Ivy League in digs per set (3.78).
• Soah Franklin ranks ninth in the conference in blocks per set (0.95), while Isa Lamus sits 10th in hitting percentage (.309).
The Series vs. Columbia:
• Cornell and Columbia will meet for the 72nd time since 1977 on Saturday, with Cornell holding a commanding 56-15 series record.
• The Big Red has won four of the last five matchups between the two teams, but Columbia took the two teams' latest meeting earlier this season, as the Lions defeated Cornell, 3-1 (25-17, 25-19, 28-30, 25-22), on Sept. 25 in New York, N.Y.
• Cornell has won each of the last four meetings between the two teams at Newman Arena and holds a 29-3 advantage over the Lions in matches played in Ithaca.
Justus Has Been Served:
• Casey Justus is putting together a senior season to be proud of, currently leading the Big Red in blocks (35.0) and hitting percentage (.354) while ranking second on the team in kills (130).
• Her hitting percentage of .354 so far this season sits fourth in the Ivy League and in the top-100 in the nation at 80th, as well as seventh in Cornell history for a single season.
• Over the first half of Ivy League play, Justus is averaging 10.14 kills and 2.7 blocks per match while hitting .377.
Finding Her Groove:
• Freshman middle blocker Camryn Carlo finds her groove more and more each match, currently sitting tied for third in the Ivy League in blocks per set (1.04) and sixth in hitting percentage (.351).
• She's becoming a consistent presence in the starting line-up for the Big Red, getting the starting nod in Cornell's last five contests and ranking second on the Big Red in blocks (18.0) and hitting percentage (.347) in Cornell's seven Ivy League matches.
Dig Big Red:
• As a team, the Big Red ranks second in the Ivy League and 57th in all of Division I in digs per set (16.06).
• Freshman libero Jackie Baker has been solid on defense, ranking seventh in the conference in digs per set (3.58) and notching double-digit digs in 12 of Cornell's 15 contests so far this season.
• After collecting 20 digs on Saturday against Dartmouth, setter Emma Worthington has re-entered the top-ten in the conference in digs per set, ranking ninth with an average of 3.19. She now has nine dig-assist double-doubles on the season.
Set for Success:
• With a little over a season and a half of match action under her belt, Worthington's 989 career assists already ranks 16th all-time in Big Red history.
You've Been Served:
• Sophomore defensive specialist Kate Stration has been a force to be reckoned with from the serving line this season, ranking second in the Ivy League and 33rd in the nation in aces per set (0.46).
• She's tallied 18 aces so far this year, highlighted by five matches with double-digit aces. Her five aces against St. John's on Sept. 3 ranks seventh all-time in program history for a four-set match.
• Stration is one of four Big Red student-athletes with double-digit aces this season alongside Jackie Baker (16), Emma Worthington (15), and Joanna Chang (11).
Leaving Their Marks:
• Seniors Madison Baptiste and Jillienne Bennett continue to leave their marks on the Cornell volleyball program, currently sitting on the Big Red's career record lists.
• Baptiste ranks 15th in Cornell history in career kills per set (2.75) and 19th in career points per set (3.03).
• Bennett ranks 16th in career attack percentage (.260).
Cornell in the Ivy Individual Rankings:
• Kate Stration ranks second in the conference in service aces per set (0.46).
• Camryn Carlo ranks third in the conference in blocks per set (1.04) and sixth in hitting percentage (.351).
• Casey Justus ranks fourth in the conference in hitting percentage (.354).
• Sydney Moore ranks fifth in the conference in blocks per set (1.00).
• Emma Worthington ranks fifth in the conference in assists per set (9.02) and ninth in digs per set (3.19).
• Jackie Baker ranks seventh in the conference in digs per set (3.58).
• Madison Baptiste ranks 10th in points per set (3.28).
Big Red Statistical Leaders:
• In kills – Madison Baptiste (148)
• In assists – Emma Worthington (478)
• In service aces – Kate Stration (18)
• In digs – Jackie Baker (190)
• In blocks – Casey Justus (35.0)
• In hitting percentage – Casey Justus (.354)
The All-Tournament Team Trifecta:
• Senior middle blocker Casey Justus went-three-for-three in the All-Tournament Team department during nonconference action, having earned a spot on each of the Crowne Plaza Albany – The Desmond Hotel Volleyball Classic, Cornell Invitational, and Duke Classic All-Tournament teams.
All-Hail the All-Tournament:
• Emma Worthington added an MVP accolade to her resume this fall, being named the Most Valuable Player of UAlbany's Crowne Plaza Albany – The Desmond Hotel Volleyball Classic. Joanna Chang and Justus joined Worthington on the All-Tournament Team.
• Rookie libero Jackie Baker earned an All-Tournament team selection following the Cornell Invitational, while Jillienne Bennett did so at the Duke Classic.
• Trudy Vande Berg is now in her seventh season as the Wendy Schaenen '79 Head Coach of Volleyball at Cornell, owning a 66-67 record.
• The 2017 Ivy League Coach of the Year, Vande Berg has helped establish the Big Red as a top-tier team in the Ivy League, as Cornell finished third in three-straight seasons from 2017-19.
• Vande Berg is assisted by associate head coach Caitlin Mahoney Hager and assistant coach Aaron DeKalb. Hager was promoted from assistant to associate head coach prior to the 2020 season after seven successful seasons on staff. DeKalb returns to the sideline in 2021 for his second coaching stint with the Big Red, having also been on staff with Vande Berg and Hager as an assistant from 2016-18. He most recently served as an assistant coach at the University of Mary for two seasons.
Up Next:
• The Cornell volleyball team will continue its five-match home stretch when it welcomes Yale on Friday, Oct. 29 at 7 p.m. and Brown on Saturday, Oct. 30 at 5 p.m. to Newman Arena in Ithaca, N.Y.
