PRINCETON, N.J. -- The Cornell volleyball team went toe-to-toe with Princeton on Saturday night from Dillon Gymnasium, ultimately falling to Tigers in four sets. The Big Red dropped to 5-11 overall and 3-4 in conference play, while the orange and black moved to 9-7 and 6-2 in the Ivy League.

Eliza Konvicka (18 kills, eight digs, three blocks) and Nicole Mallus (14 kills and two blocks) led the Cornell attack for the second consecutive night. Freshman Jaida Sione also put together a solid night for the Big Red, netting ten kills and a team-high .444 hitting percentage, and senior Sydney Moore added five more blocks to her total on the year. Lucia Scalamandre and Kamryn Chaney had 28 of the Tigers' 48 kills in the victory, which puts them in second place in the Ivy League standings.

Like Friday's match against Penn, Cornell found itself in a battle right out of the gates in the first set against the Tigers, as both teams traded points early on. Cornell would pull away to a 10-6 advantage thanks to a 4-0 run headed by a combo block by Sydney Moore and JaidaSione. Despite the advantage, Princeton continued to claw its way back in, using a separate 5-0 spark to take back the lead. The tug of war continued until consecutive points by the Tigers put them ahead at 20-18, forcing a Cornell timeout. The stoppage did not stop the momentum for Princeton, as it never gave the lead back and squeaked out a 26-24 win. 

Despite the tough start, the Big Red kept in the fight to open the second set, continuing to jockey for positioning with the Tigers. But when Princeton took a 12-9 lead, head coach Trudy Vande Berg called a timeout to stop the momentum. This time, the stoppage proved to be the thorn in the side of the Tigers, as Cornell burst out on a 5-0 run, headlined by three kills in four points by Nicole Mallus, to take a 14-12 lead. Princeton would continue to stick around throughout the set, but the Big Red would never lose the lead. And in crunch time, the red and white won four out of the last five points to take the second set, 25-19. 

With both teams not giving an inch, the third set would be as tight as the first. Cornell would take the early control, racing out to a 4-2 lead before Princeton flipped the script with a 4-0 run to spring ahead, 4-6. The Big Red would continue to lurk behind by one or two points until a block by Mallus and Moore gave the team a 20-19 advantage. But the magic wore off quickly, as Princeton would slam the door shut with a 5-0 run to end the third, taking the set 25-20. 

Rolling into the fourth set, the Big Red had its eyes set on a trip to a decisive fifth for the third time this season. Cornell would hold a slim 3-2 advantage out of the gate, but the Princeton wave was too tough to handle, as it would win 11 out of 15 points to take control,13-7. The Big Red would keep the deficit steady at six, as a Mallus kill assisted by Doga Ozalp forced a timeout with the set at 18-12. But the comeback attempt fell short, as the Tigers ran away with a 25-13 victory to take the match and extend its winning streak over the Big Red to six straight.

Match Notes

• Cornell has now lost its last six matches against Princeton. Its last win over the Tigers came in four sets in Dillon Gymnasium on Oct. 5, 2019.
• Eliza Konvicka (18), Nicole Mallus (14), and Jaida Sione (10) each had double-digit kills in the loss. It is the first time Cornell has had three players with ten or more since the team took down Harvard in four sets on Nov. 5, 2022 in Cambridge, Mass.
• Camryn Carlo recorded her 100th kill of the season halfway through the first set of Saturday's match. Carlo is the third Big Red athlete to exceed the century mark, joining Eliza Konvicka and Nicole Mallus. 
• Sydney Moore continues to be a force up front for the Big Red, as she recorded her eighth game this season with five or more blocks. The senior had 11 such occurrences in her previous three seasons combined.
• The Tigers had 14 aces in the win over Cornell. It is the most an opponent has recorded on the Big Red in 2023.

Up Next

Cornell returns home next weekend for a matchup against Columbia on Saturday, Oct. 21. The first serve is at 2:00 p.m., and the game will be available to stream on ESPN+.