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Toward the end of the second set, Syracuse had possession trailing 24-20 to Iowa. Looking to start a run was Alyssa Bert, who was at the service line. Bert took a few set-up bounces, then with a big swing, served the volleyball toward the opposition. But the hit was too powerful, careening out of bounds and giving Iowa the set win via service error.

Syracuse volleyball’s 2023 home-opener against Iowa ended in a 3-0 loss. Bert’s misfire was one of nine service errors throughout the match.

To begin the first set, Syracuse did not allow Iowa to get out to a large lead early, something that the Orange have struggled with throughout the season. Zharia Harris-Waddy began the scoring for the Orange with a service-ace. After two quick scores by Iowa, SU went on an early 5-0 run to open up a 6-2 lead. Then, the Hawkeyes retaliated with a 4-0 run to tie the game.

Following a blocked shot attempt by Lauren McCabe, Iowa continued to apply pressure on SU’s defense, scoring three straight. But that run was cut short by Ariana Joubert, scoring her first of a career-high 10 kills on the evening.

“I feel like this game was a really good opportunity for me and I just wanted to win,” Joubert said. “I think that was the mentality. I just wanted to compete.”

The two teams continued to battle it out in a tightly contested first set. Iowa managed to go on a 4-0 run, bringing the score to 15-11. Syracuse was forced to take a timeout. Out of the break, the team went on a 5-1 run. With the score knotted up at 16-16, the Hawkeyes yet again responded to an Orange run, this time going on a 6-1 run. Syracuse managed to score three points in a row down the stretch, but ultimately it was not enough. Off an errant attack by Veronica Sierzant, Iowa took the first set of the match, 25-21.

Entering the second set, the two teams traded pairs of scores to tie the game 2-2. Iowa then went on a 3-1 scoring run, followed by a 4-0 SU run. That run was ended by a service error from Greta Schlichter, and Iowa proceeded to go on a 9-2 push that sucked the momentum out of both the team and the crowd. Despite the substantial run, the Hawkeyes only led 14-10. But stretches like those are what coach Bakeer Ganesharatnam wanted to avoid in the match.

“I think overall we were okay but we allowed them to have too many runs where they scored four and possibly sometimes five points,” Ganesharatnam said. “If we would have reduced those runs we could have (won) at least one set, I believe possibly two.”

Syracuse attempted to get back on the board after the run with a combined block by Joubert and Harris-Waddy. But Iowa quickly countered, courtesy of Delaney McSweeney. The 6-foot-7 middle blocker scored off both a kill and a block. Harris-Waddy scored a kill after that, but Iowa again rattled off two straight points, making the score 18-12.

SU, however, was not ready to bow down yet. The Orange went on a 6-0 run to tie the game at 18-18. Soon after, Iowa yet again was ready to combat a Syracuse run with five straight points. The squads traded scores, but it was ultimately SU who fell in the second set, 25-20, after a service error by Bert.

The third and final set saw Syracuse start to unravel. The team went from poised and composed in the first two sets to a team that was stuck looking for answers. Without Cherlin Antonio in the lineup due to a coaches decision, the Orange had trouble when the going got tough.

Published on September 16, 2023 at 1:18 am