ITHACA, N.Y. – Cornell volleyball returns home for the final time in 2023 to host Princeton and Penn in Ivy League action this weekend.

CORNELL VS. PRINCETON
SITE: Newman Arena at Bartels Hall – Ithaca, N.Y.
DATE and TIME: Friday, Nov. 3 at 7 p.m.
RECORDS: Cornell (6-13, 4-6 Ivy League), Princeton (10-8, 7-3 Ivy League)
SERIES RECORD: Princeton Leads, 62-21
BROADCAST: ESPN+
LIVE STATS: cornellbigred.com

CORNELL VS. PENN
SITE: Newman Arena at Bartels Hall – Ithaca, N.Y.
DATE and TIME: Saturday, Nov. 4 at 5 p.m.
RECORDS: Cornell (6-13, 4-6 Ivy League), Penn (3-17, 1-9 Ivy League)
SERIES RECORD: Penn leads, 47-34
BROADCAST: ESPN+
LIVE STATS: cornellbigred.com

THANK YOU SENIORS!
Cornell will celebrate its four graduating seniors during Saturday's match against Penn in Rylee Baptiste, Sydney Moore, Alexa Orent, and Kate Stration.

WEEK IN REVIEW
Cornell is coming off a weekend split on the road against Harvard and Dartmouth. The Big Red rallied from two sets down on Friday to defeat the Crimson in five before losing in three to the Big Green on Saturday in Hanover.

The Big Red had its backs against the wall on Friday night after losing the first two sets by a combined eight points. But the sophomore tandem of Eliza Konvicka and Nicole Mallus kept the Big Red alive, netting eight of the team's 15 kills to clinch the third, 25-17. Konvicka came up clutch again for the Big Red in the fourth, recording three straight kills to give Cornell a 19-17 lead it would not lose to push the match to a decisive fifth. And with the momentum train on its side, Cornell got the job done, winning the final set, 15-12, to pick up its first five-set win in over two years and snap the Crimson's eight-game winning streak inside Malkin Athletic Center.

Konvicka had 22 kills and four blocks in the win for the Big Red, making it the fourth time in her career that the sophomore has had 20 or more kills in a match. Mallus (14 kills, three blocks), Sydney Moore (eight kills, team-high seven blocks), and Doga Ozalp (career-high 48 assists) also helped lead Cornell to the upset win, which was its first road win in five sets against a conference opponent since knocking off Penn in the Palestra on Oct. 4, 2019.

Despite the win on Friday, Cornell struggled on Saturday against the Big Green, losing in straight sets. Camryn Carlo led the Big Red with seven kills, while Konvicka had five successful attacks and five blocks. Cornell also failed to record a service ace for the first time since Oct. 11, 2014 and had its fewest kills in a match since recording 23 in a three-set loss to Princeton on Oct. 8, 2016. 

A LOOK INSIDE THE MATCHUPS

VS PRINCETON

• Friday's match will be the 74th all-time between the Big Red and Tigers.
• Cornell is 9-21 all-time in Newman Arena against Princeton. The Big Red has also lost four consecutive matches to the Tigers at home, with its last victory coming in four sets on Oct. 13, 2017. 
• The Big Red has battled with the Tigers to four sets in four out of the last ten matches in Ithaca, N.Y. Cornell is 3-1 in those matches, with the loss being a five-set heartbreaker on Nov. 1, 2019.
• In its last ten home matches against the Tigers, Cornell has eclipsed 50 or more kills four times. The Big Red is 3-1 in those matches, with its last win via four sets on Oct. 13, 2017.

MATCHUP FLASHBACK: BIG RED BATTLES WITH TIGERS, FALLS IN FOUR SETS

Cornell and Princeton matched up earlier this season in Dillon Gymnasium, with the Tigers taking the match 3-1. The Big Red recorded 28 kills and a .349 hitting percentage in the first two sets but struggled to gain momentum in sets three and four, mustering 21 kills and a .093 attack percentage.

Eliza Konvicka (18), Nicole Mallus (14), and Jaida Sione (10) each recorded double-digit kills in the loss for Cornell, which was the third straight for the Big Red in the Garden State. Senior Sydney Moore led the Big Red defense with six total blocks, and Doga Ozalp recorded 35 assists in the defeat. Lucia Scalamandre (15) and Kamryn Cheney (13) each had double-digit kills for the Tigers, who had the slight edge in assists (45-43), digs (48-42), and kills (50-49). 

SCOUTING REPORT

• The Tigers come into Friday's match sitting in second place in the Ivy at 10-8 overall and 7-3 in conference play. Princeton split its conference games this past weekend, falling to Yale in three sets on Friday before knocking off Brown in four on Saturday.
• Middle Blocker Lucia Scalamandre was the leading attacker on the weekend for Princeton with 21 kills and a .443 hitting percentage. The Topanga, Calif. native also comes into Friday as the conference leader in hitting percentage (.431) and is third in kills with 196 through 70 sets played in 2023. 
• Freshman Mariah Haislip has also been a solid attacking option for the Tigers since beginning conference play, as she is fourth in the Ivy with 2.97 kills/set.
• Sydney Draper continued to prove why she is the best setter in the Ivy, handing out 62 assists against Yale and Brown combined on the weekend. The freshman is also at the top of the conference in total assists (721) and assists/set (10.30). 
• Since beginning conference play, Princeton's attack ranks first in total kills (514) and fourth in hitting percentage (.236). 
• The Tigers are also not afraid of putting its opponents in long rallies, as it had 979 total digs and a 13.99 average per set. Both statistics rank third in the conference coming into Friday.
• Princeton's defense has struggled up front during conference play, as it sits seventh in total blocks (66.0) and average/set (1.65).

VS PENN

• Saturday's match will be the 82nd all-time between the Big Red and the Quakers.
• Cornell is 17-13 all-time inside Newman Arena against Penn and has won eight out of its last ten home matches over the Quakers.
• In its last eight home wins against Penn, six have been in four sets or less. Four of those matches have also been sweeps for the Big Red.
• The red and white has hit above .300 in four out of its last five home matches against Penn, including a .443 in a sweep of the Quakers on Oct. 9, 2021. 

MATCHUP FLASHBACK: CORNELL DOWNS PENN IN FOUR IN PHILADELPHIA

Cornell and Penn matched up on Oct. 13, with the Big Red picking up its first win in the Palestra since 2019 with a 3-1 victory. Both teams split the opening two sets before Cornell turned up its offensive firepower with 26 kills and a combined .401 hitting percentage over sets three and four to secure the win. Penn had 17 kills and a .022 attack percentage over those final two frames in the defeat. 

Eliza Konvicka continued her reign as the top attacker for Cornell with 17 kills, eight blocks, and eight digs. Camryn Carlo and Sydney Moore also picked up eight stuffs on the night alongside a combined 14 kills and a .379 attack percentage. Sophomore setter Doga Ozalp also dished out 45 assists and had nine digs to secure the 34th in program history over the Quakers. The Big Red also had 16 blocks in the victory, making it the first time Cornell had 15 or more since a win over Harvard on Sept. 28, 2018. 

SCOUTING REPORT

• The Quakers come into the weekend at 3-17 and 1-9 in Ivy League action. Penn is coming off a tough weekend after being swept by Brown on Friday and falling to Yale in four on Saturday. 
• Zada Sanger grabbed the spotlight on the attacking side for the Quakers on the weekend with 26 kills. The first-year player from California also comes into Friday and Saturday with 228 kills on the year, good for second in the conference behind Eliza Konvicka's 258.
• Sophomore setter Anna Shohfi had the primary setting duties for the Quakers against the Bears and Bulldogs, picking up 67 assists. The Chapel Hill, N.C. native has 202 handed out on the year and has recorded 30 or more in three straight matches. 
• The Quakers have kept its opponents working for each point, as it sits second in total digs (985) and fourth in digs/set (13.87) in the conference. 
• Since beginning conference play, Penn has allowed its opponents to have a field day on the offensive attack, giving up 490 kills and a .270 hitting percentage over 36 sets. Both stat lines are last in the Ivy League. 
• Penn has also struggled in the blocking department, sitting last in Ivy League play with 49.0 total blocks and 89.0 given up. 

UP NEXT
Cornell will close out the Ivy League regular season with two matches on the road. The Big Red will travel to Rhode Island to face Brown on Friday, Nov. 10, at 7:00 p.m. before taking on Yale on Saturday, Nov. 11, at 5:30 p.m. Both matches will be streamed on ESPN+.