POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (September 30, 2017) -- The Vassar College women's volleyball team kept its strong play rolling Saturday afternoon, earning a pair of victories over strong opponents with a 3-1 win over Nazareth College before topping SUNY Geneseo 3-0 in quad match action from Kenyon Hall. The two wins upped Vassar's win streak to six matches, matching a season-best, and VC has now won 12 of its last 13 matches. The Brewers are now also 10-0 when playing at home. Vassar defeated Nazareth with scores of 22-25, 35-22, 25-21, 25-22, while topping the Knights 29-27, 25-25, and 25-18.

Vassar 3, Nazareth 1
In the opening set, the Brewers earned the first two points with back-to-back kills by Devan Gallagher. The Golden Flyers were offensively effective, earning 16 kills in the first set and averaging a .341 hitting percentage. This forced the Brewers into a six-point deficit which they spent the remainder of the set fighting back. With a strong service run by Anna Zucchro, the Brewers were able to tie the score at 13-13. In spite of earning 17 kills of their own, the Brewers were not able to hold onto the set, dropping it 22-25.
 
In the second set, the Vassar defense forced Nazareth College's offense into a .073 hitting percentage. With the Brewers' strong in-system passing, Annie MacMillan was able to distribute sets all across the net. Colette Cambey, Bria Corham, Gallegher and Jennifer Kerbs each finished the set with three terminations. The Brewers closed out the set with a score of 25-22.
 
The Brewers carried their momentum through the third game. The stanza was close as both teams remained within two points of one another. The Brewers' service pressure helped propel the Brewers to victory, forcing the Flyers out-of-system. Corham, Lauren Ninkovich, Gallagher and Anna Zucchero added pressure from the baseline, each earning an ace of their own.
 
In the final set, the momentum remained on the Brewers' side of the court. After losing the first point, the Brewers responded with three consecutive kills coming from Cambey, Corham and Gallagher. The set was close until Corham went to the baseline to serve. During her service run, she earned two aces and helped push the Brewers to a 21-14 lead. The Flyers tried to come back with a service run of their own but the Brewer defense was relentless, ending the match 25-22.
 
Corham proved to be a threat in every aspect of the game, ending the match with 13 kills, five aces and four digs. Kerbs finished with an efficient hitting percentage of .333 earning nine kills on 21 attempts along with three assisted blocks. The Brewers' success relied heavily on the Vassar defense as three defenders contributed over 15 digs: Jordan Schreeder (20) and Anna Zucchero (25) and Lauren Ninkovich (16). Junior setter Annie MacMillan dished out 51 assists, racked up six digs as well.

Vassar 3, Geneseo 0
The first set was a battle as both teams hit hard, lengthened rallies and served tough. The Brewers were down by four points early on in the set but with strong serving pressure by Gallagher and numerous hussle plays by the Vassar defense, VC came back to tie SUNY Geneseo late in the set. The Brewers hit an average .240 with 10 of the 18 kills coming from Gallagher, who earned the last three kills to close out the first set in extended play.

The second set Vassar College was dominant with a .355 hitting percentage. Macmillan distributed the offense evenly across hitters as Corham, Cambey, Jane McLeod and Gallagher finished the set with at least three kills. The Vassar defense led by Zucchero dug up SUNY Geneseo's hard swings and forced them into a negative hitting percentage (-.029). Kerbs remained a strong wall up at net, collecting two block assists in the set. The Brewers closed the set with a score 25-15.
 
In the third and final set, the Brewers started off strong and continued to control the set. The Brewers were up by 6 points, 12-6. The Knights responded with more offensive pressure almost tieing up the score 15-16. MacMillan got to the baseline and served an ace, creating new energy and momentum for the Brewers. The Brewers continue to capitalize on the points until Corham finished off the set with two consecutive aces.

The Brewers were dominant and versatile. Two Brewers finished the game with double-doubles: Gallagher finished with 18 kills and 17 digs while Annie MacMillan chalked up 36 assists and 15 digs of her own. Jane McLeod added to the offensive pressure with nine kills and three assisted blocks. Corham contributed to every aspect of the game with seven kills, seven digs and three services aces. Zucchero led the team with a team-best 21 digs.
 
Grace Cergol led SUNY Geneseo with 16 kills while teammate Alexandra Frank contributed seven kills of her own. Emily Ast earned 31 assists with teammate Sam Mendelsohn ending the game with 19 digs.

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The Brewers will look to continue their winning streak in league play this week. Vassar will hit the road this Tuesday to compete against Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson, NY at 7 p.m. in action from Stevenson Athletic Center.