ONEONTA, NY – Powered by a 39-kill effort from rookie Hailey Hayes, the Vassar College women's volleyball team earned a pair of victories in tri-match action on Saturday. The Brewers defeated Oneonta State, 3-2 (25-19, 25-17, 19-25, 23-25, 15-10) followed by a 3-0 (25-19, 25-22, 25-14) win over Alfred. Vassar is now 5-6 on the season after the successful Saturday action.

The opening set saw the Brewers jump out to a 5-0 advantage, aided by a number of Red Dragon errors, along with a pair  of service aces from senior setter Madison Wilson. Oneonta battled back, getting close, but the teams continued to trade points with Vassar holding the edge. A kill from rookie outside hitter Hailey Hayes, combined with an ace from senior utility Sara Ehnstrom and a final strike by sophomore hitter Ava Casalino gave Vassar the 25-19 first set win.

Second set saw the Brewers trailing early, but coming back with a kill from rookie hitter Julia Hale, an ace by Hayes, coupled with a kill from senior hitter Camille Donald for the 5-3 early lead.  Vassar used a great burst late to build up a lead Oneonta could not come back from, powered by back-to-back kills from Hayes enroute to the 25-17 win and a 2-0 match advantage.

Third set action saw the Brewers open a 5-3 lead behind a kill from Wilson and a pair of Oneonta errors, but the homestanding Red Dragons battled back behind a pair of Vassar errors and an ace from Sophia Gerace. Oneonta used an 8-0 run in the middle of the set, including four aces from Kayla Rende to take a significant lead. Kills by Wilson, Hale and Hayes gained pulled it back to a 23-19 deficit for the Brewers. Despite the momentum, the Brewers were unable to stop the Red Dragons, who forced the fourth set with a 25-19 win.

In the fourth set, the two teams battled back and forth, but it was the Red Dragons that forged ahead with a 13-9 advantage behind several Vassar errors. The Brewers later pulled it to within three (17-14) behind a kill from rookie outside hitter Morgan Miller and an Oneonta error. Back-to-back kills and consecutive aces from Ehnstrom tied the set at 18-all.

It was a close battle that continued over the final points. Vassar took the 21-19 edge behind a pair of kills from Hayes, but Oneonta battled back, capitalizing on two errors from the Brewers to tie it at 21-all. Another VC error tilted the set in Oneonta's favor, but a Casalino kill once again tied it at 22 apiece.

In the end, it came down to another Brewers error and an ace from Rende for Oneonta to secure the 25-23 set win and force a fifth and deciding set.

The Brewers trailed in the fifth set, but took a 7-5 advantage behind four straight points to force an Oneonta timeout. Leading the way was a Donald kill, followed by three straight Red Dragon errors.

It remained a very close set as the Brewers sat with only a three-point (11-8) margin after a Casalino kill. The set deficit for the Red Dragons closed further as multiple VC errors made it an 11-10 margin for Vassar. Another strike from Ehnstrom and errors by the Red Dragons led to the 15-10 set win and the 3-2 match victory for the Brewers.

Hayes led the way with a career-and-match high 23 kills. She also added an assist, an ace, a block assist and 16 digs.
Ehnstrom recorded 12 kills with a team-high three service aces, adding 12 digs, while Hale notched eight kills with two block solos, two block assists and two digs. Wilson finished with a match-best 40 assists, while sophomore libero Maya Levine had two service aces and a team-high 20 digs.

Vassar's second match of the day saw them take on the Saxons and the Brewers cruised to a 3-0 victory. In the opening set, it was a close score until the middle frame as VC utilized two Ehnstrom aces, paired with kills from Casalino and Donald to take a solid lead. The Brewers continued to hold the advantage late, capitalizing on four of the last five points, aided by two kills from Casalino, for the 25-19 set win.

Second set action was much tighter despite the Brewers opening with a 6-1 lead. Leading the charge during the opening run was a pair of kills from Casalino and Donald. Alfred closed the gap behind several errors from the Brewers, but Vassar continued to lead. Holding a 24-19 advantage, the Saxons battled back to make it a 24-22 game, but the Brewers closed it out for the 25-22 win.

The third and final set saw the Brewers open strong with a 4-0 advantage. Vassar later used a 5-0 run, powered by back-to-back kills from Hayes to take a commanding lead and later earn the 25-14 set win for the 3-0 match victory.

Hayes added another 16 kills to her effort on the day, finishing as the match leader. She also had a block assist and nine digs. Wilson posted 26 assists with 10 digs and two service aces, while Ehnstrom added seven kills, three aces, 11 digs and a block assist. Levine posted a team-best 13 digs, while Casalino added five kills and two block assists.

Vassar returns to action next weekend when it returns to Liberty League play. The Brewers travel to St. Lawrence on Friday for a 7pm match, followed by a 2pm tilt on Saturday at Clarkson.