The New York University women's volleyball team closed out the Ithaca College Invitational on Saturday, September 20, in Ithaca, NY, with victories against Smith College and Swarthmore College.

The Violets responded well after the loss to host Ithaca on Friday, beating Smith 25-9, 25-21, 25-14, and then defeating Swarthmore 25-23, 19-25, 25-22, 25-18.

The first match was controlled by NYU from start to finish, as the Violets jumped out to a 10-2 lead in the opening set and closed it out on a four-point run highlighted by the serving of Grace Nelson, who finished the set with six aces, including two in that final run. Five different Violets registered a kill in the set.

Smith came out hot in the second set and took a 9-1 lead. NYU struggled with serve receive in this set, giving up three aces. However, the Violets battled back, going on a 9-1 run of their own to tie the set at 11-11. The rest of the set stayed tight, with neither team taking more than a two-point lead until the Violets made a late push to win the set.

NYU held Smith at arms length for the entre final set, never conceding the lead on the way to victory. The offense stayed strong, as the team hit a staggering .429. The offense registered 38 kills on 36 assists, with Nelson leading with way with 11 kills. Casey Cho and Stella Dillon both added seven.

"We did a great job in the first match putting a lot of pressure on Smith and getting solid contribution from our offense," said Head Coach Andrew Brown. 

NYU did not let off the gas in their second match of the day against Swarthmore. The Phoenix held the lead for most of the first set, but NYU grabbed the momentum and finished the set on a 9-2 run. NYU had 20 kills in the first set alone, with Nelson leading the team with six. 

The Violets were unable to make it a clean sweep, as Swarthmore won the second set. But, NYU regrouped and won the third set with the defense coming up clutch with three blocks. In the final set of the day, the Violets slammed the door on the Phoenix. The defense and serving again helped the Violets win the match, and walk out of the Ithaca Invitational with two wins.

The Violets totaled 14 blocks against the Phoenix, and the offense hit .280 over the match. Nelson led the team again with 18 kills and Dillon added double-digit kills as well (10). Both Ava Launsbach (31) and Jessica Ding (25) tallied over 25 assists in the match.

"Against Swarthmore, it was a total team effort with a lot of new players entering the game that hadn't played all weekend," Brown explained. "They really stepped in and stepped up and it just shows our depth in our ability to adapt,"

The Violets take the court next in Atlanta, GA, for UAA Round Robin #1. The Violets first match is against Washington University, in St. Louis on Saturday, September 27, at 11:00am.