ITHACA, N.Y. – The sister act of Madison Baptiste and Rylee Baptiste lifted the Cornell women's volleyball team to a five-set victory, 3-2 (25-23, 25-18, 22-25, 22-25, 15-10), over Columbia on Saturday afternoon in an Ivy League clash at Newman Arena in Ithaca, N.Y.
M. Baptiste racked up a season-best and match-high 21 kills on a .269 hitting percentage to go along with 18 digs for her third-consecutive double-double and fifth of the season. It was her sister that set her up for success, as R. Baptiste collected a match-high and career-best 51 assists. The setting was an area where Cornell established a distinct advantage in the contest, as the Big Red only had one ball handling error on the match as compared to Columbia's 15.
Casey Justus had herself another solid day as well, matching her career-high in kills (17) while hitting .385 and adding a team-high four blocks. Joanna Chang joined M. Baptiste and Justus in double-figure kills with 10, also notching 12 digs for a double-double of her own.
Jackie Baker was a dig machine in the back row, collecting a career-best 20 digs. Megan Bickel also had her fair share of moments in the spotlight, tallying seven digs and 13 receptions with zero errors.
The Big Red jumped out to a two-set lead in the match, edging Columbia in the first set, 25-23, before claiming a 25-18 victory in the second. Although the Lions out-blocked the Big Red on the match, 12.0 to 8.0, Cornell held the advantage in the second, posting 4.0 blocks as compared to Columbia's two. The Big Red came out of the gates ready to block in the second, posting blocks on the first three plays of the set to establish an early lead. Camryn Carlo had a hand in all three, and Avery Hanan teamed up with her for a pair of them. M. Baptiste paired up with Carlo on the other. Four aces to Columbia's one also played a role in Cornell's set two success, as Chang, M. Baptiste, R. Baptiste, and Bickel all secured an ace in the second. After going on a 6-1 run with the score at 5-5 to take a 12-6 lead, the Big Red never looked back in the set, ultimately taking a 2-0 lead for the match.
Columbia would even things up however with wins in the third and fourth sets, each by a score of 25-22. The Lions out-hit Cornell in each of the two sets, including .333 to .286 in the third and .205 to .116 in the fourth.
With the match on the line for both teams at two sets a piece, Cornell would persevere. With the score knotted up in the fifth at 5-5, the Big Red scored six of the next seven points to take an 11-6 lead that it would never relinquish. A pair of kills from Justus and a kill each from Chang and Carlo highlighted the match-winning run.
With the victory, Cornell improves to 6-10 overall and 2-6 in Ivy League play, while Columbia falls to 5-13 on the season and 2-6 in conference action.
The Cornell volleyball team will continue its five-match homestand next weekend when it hosts Yale on Friday, Oct. 29 at 7 p.m. and Brown on Saturday, Oct. 30 at 5 p.m. at Newman Arena in Ithaca, N.Y.
