HOBOKEN, N.J. (September 7, 2022)  – Junior Meg Dion had nine kills on 13 attacks with just a single error as the Stevens Institute of Technology women's volleyball team swept Wilkes University (25-15, 25-18, 25-13) Wednesday in a MAC Freedom matchup at Canavan Arena.

Sophomore Cleo Shannon had eight kills and juniors Elle Maggio and Sophia Schaefer each had five for the Ducks, who evened their season record at 2-2, while moving to 1-0 in conference play. Since moving to the MAC Freedom prior to the 2019 season, Stevens is 15-1 in league matches. The Ducks have won their last 11 conference openers.

Kelsey Carroll had five kills to pace the Colonels, who fell to 1-2 on the year and to 0-1 in conference play. Stevens is 3-1 all-time against Wilkes, with all three victories taking place after the teams became conference foes.

Stevens controlled the serve-receive game, finishing with 16 aces - the most for the program since 2018. Dion led the way with four to match a career high, while sophomore Bailey Axelrad and senior Enkhsanaa Enkhbayar each added three. The three aces marked a new career best for Axelrad, while Enkhbayar matched hers. Seven different Ducks finished with an ace, while the Colonels only had two.

The serving prowess masked a season-best performance on the attack. The Ducks hit a season-high .296 (37-13-81) to mark the 13th time in the last two seasons that the team committed 15 or fewer attack errors in a match. The offensive fireworks led to a decisive 37-16 edge in kills, with Stevens totaling at least 12 kills in each set.

The opening set saw Stevens jump out to an early lead with junior Madison Sappia at the serve. The Ducks jumped out to a 7-4 lead after a Dion kill, only for Wilkes to claw back into the set and tie the frame at eight. 

An ace by Alexa Cassel gave Wilkes an 11-10 advantage, however that would be the Colonels' final lead of the night. With Axelrad on the service line, the Ducks reeled off five straight points to take a 15-10 lead. A Dion ace and a kill by first-year Gabbi Roberts pushed the margin to 20-14 and the Ducks scored five of the final six points, including back-to-back aces by Enkhbayar, to claim the opening set.

A double block by Shannon and senior Ava Smithing and a kill from Shannon to cap a long rally handed the Ducks an early two-point lead. Stevens was able to maintain a one-point advantage into the middle portion of the set, before a 5-1 run gave the Ducks a little breathing room. The teams alternated two-point swings until four straight points pushed Stevens to set point. Enkhbayar was again the catalyst, dishing out two assists and serving an ace during the key sequence. A Wilkes service error closed out the frame.

The third set was all Stevens. The Ducks scored the first five points and eight of the first 10 in the final frame to close out the match. Back-to-back points for Wilkes drew the guests back to within five, but a six-point run broke the set open. Stevens scored five of the final seven points to complete the sweep. In the match-clinching set, the Ducks held Wilkes to an even hitting percentage, allowing just five kills, while the Colonels committed five attack errors. Conversely, the Ducks' attack percentage of .320 (12-4-25) was a match high.

The contest was the first athletic event held in the renovated Canavan Arena.

Inside the Numbers

• Each side finished with three total blocks. Dion led Stevens with two rejections, while Shannon, Schaefer, Maggio and Smithing each had one. Nicole Fitzpatrick and Allison Murie had two blocks each to pace Wilkes.
• Eight different Ducks had at least one kill.
• Enkhbayar dished out 17 assists for her third straight match with double-digit helpers.
• Axelrad led the Ducks with eight digs and has totaled 68 digs across her first four matches, surpassing last season's total.
• Senior Karen Xu made her collegiate debut and recorded a pair of kills.
• Junior Kristy Chen also made her collegiate debut and served up a pair of aces.
• First-years Mallory Eder and Vivian Lisboa saw their first action of the season.

Unsung Hero

• In her season debut, junior Madison Sappia served up a pair of aces and recorded four digs.

From the Sidelines - Head Coach Brianna Jones

• "I love how everyone did their part tonight, which allowed us to play more like ourselves."

Up Next

• Women's volleyball heads to upstate New York for the North Country Classic, hosted by St. Lawrence and Clarkson.
• Stevens will take on St. Lawrence and Lasell on Sept. 9, which will be followed by contests against Clarkson and Middlebury.
• Links for live stats and video are available on StevensDucks.com.

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