Women's Volleyball Goes 2-0 to Advance to the Championship Bracket in Rochester

Violets Will Face Rochester in the Semifinals at the RIT Invitational

Junior libero Rachel Sawyer tallied a match-high 23 digs.

The New York University women's volleyball swept St. John Fisher College to win Pool C and advance to the championship bracket of the 2009 RIT Invitational, Friday, September 18, in Rochester, NY

The Violets (10-1) continued their defense of their 2008 title by dispatching the Cardinals 3-0 (25-19, 25-17, 25-15)

Leading NYU on offense for the second consecutive match, freshman Kendyl Dunn tallied 11 kills and hit .474 while adding two service aces and a block.

On defense, junior libero Rachel Sawyer continued to put up big numbers, notching a match-high 23 digs.

Also tallying double-digit digs were sophomores Elizabeth Dick and Britney Messier who both put up 11 while Dick also added seven kills.

For the Cardinals, sophomores Becca Smith and Laura Schwach both recorded six kills while senior Jenna Waldron put up 13 digs.

In the team's first match of the day, NYU easily defeated SUNY Oneonta in straight sets.

The Violet held the Red Dragons (4-7) to a -.021 hitting percentage for the match, defeating them 3-0 (28-26, 25-14, 25-13).

Recording her eighth double-digit kill match of the season, Dunn led the Violets with 11 kills while hitting a team best .435 along with three blocks.

Also recording double-digit kills was Dick who also put down 11 kills along with seven digs and a service ace.

Freshman Natalie Fernandez put together a strong all-around match, tallying seven kills, nine digs, two service aces, and three blocks including two solos.

On defense, Sawyer recorded her fifth consecutive double-digit digs match, putting up a match-high 12 along with a team-high three service aces.

For the Red Dragons, sophomore Christina Fabiochi recorded seven kills while fellow sophomore Jessica Zerega put up 11 digs.

The Violets return to the court tomorrow at noon when they take on University Athletic Association member University of Rochester in a non-conference matchup in the semifinals. Live stats will be available for the match.