NEW YORK, N.Y. -- Sophomore Nicole Mallus put on a show on Saturday night for the Cornell volleyball team, netting a career-high 17 kills as the Big Red took down Columbia in four sets (25-19, 21-25, 25-21, 25-20) from Levien Gymnasium. Cornell improved to 3-7 on the year, while Columbia dropped to 2-8.
Mallus was not the only one with double-digit kills for the Big Red, as her sophomore counterpart, Eliza Konvicka, had 15 kills, 11 digs, and three aces. Other notables for the red and white included junior Camryn Carlo (seven kills, match-high five blocks), freshman Jaida Sione (seven kills, two blocks), and senior Sydney Moore (three kills, three blocks, team-high .600 hitting percentage). Eva Atkins and Logan Harlock each had ten kills in the loss for the Lions, who have now lost nine out of the last 11 matches against Cornell.
The Big Red led every statistical category over the Lions, including assists (47-39), blocks (9.0-7.0), hitting percentage (.295-.198), kills (52-48), and service aces (6-4), with three of those coming from Konvicka.
Cornell never lost the lead in the first set and continued the momentum into the second with an early 4-2 advantage. That was the highest it got for the Big Red as the Lions continued to jockey for positioning, eventually taking a 22-19 lead to force a Cornell timeout. The stoppage did nothing to slow the Columbia momentum, as it took the second set. Despite the boost for the Lions, the Big Red burst out to a 5-2 lead in set three, highlighted by a kill apiece from Konvicka and sophomore Doga Ozalp and a stuff block by Carlo and Moore. The red and white would stretch its lead to four (11-7) before a 7-2 run by the Lions gave them its first in the set at 14-13. Cornell would continue to battle from behind until a kill by Mallus made it 21-20 Big Red. The lead would never disappear, as a combo block by Carlo and Sione and a kill sealed the third set for Cornell.
The Lions would not go away quietly in the fourth set, taking a 15-13 lead halfway through, putting the pressure on. But the Big Red did not crumble, as Mallus' then-new career-high 15th kill of the match sparked a 4-0 run to put the Big Red ahead, 17-15. And that was all Cornell needed, as they cruised away late in the set to take home the victory and drop the Lions to 2-8 on the year.
Match Notes
- With Saturday's win, the Big Red is now 60-15 all-time against the Lions and 21-10 in Levien Gymnasium.
- Cornell also extends its winning streak over the Lions to four. Its last loss came on Sept. 25, 2021, in a five-set thriller in New York, N.Y.
- Sophomore Eliza Konvicka now has double-digit kills in seven of the Big Red's ten matches this season and has also recorded three or more aces in three matches.
- Saturday's match is the second time in three matchups against the Lions that the Big Red have had two players with ten or more kills.
- Junior Camryn Carlo has recorded five or more blocks in five of Cornell's ten matches in 2023. She also retakes the team lead with 42.0.
- Doga Ozalp recorded 39 assists in the win, making it the ninth time this season that the sophomore has dished out 20 or more assists.
Up Next
The Big Red returns to Newman Arena at Bartels Hall for two Ivy League matches on homecoming weekend. Cornell hosts Dartmouth on Friday, Sept. 29 at 7:00 p.m. before hosting Harvard on Saturday, Sept. 30 at 5:00 p.m. Both matches will be streamed on ESPN+.
