SU volleyball falls in second straight match of opening weekend
By Zac Ventola | @ZacVentola
Urbana-Champaign, IL – Syracuse volleyball (0-2, 0-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) lost both matches of its opening weekend, with the second coming at the foot of Illinois (1-1, 0-0 Big 10 Conference). SU got off to a hot start at the beginning of the first set, but was dominated throughout the rest of the match.
The Orange and Fighting Illini put a blowout in the history books in their first matchup in program history.
SU mirrored its same starting lineup as it did in Saturday’s 3-0 loss to Cincinnati, which included a trio of freshmen. Setter Charis Burge, outside hitter Aileen McAllister and middle blocker Emma Faerber each got the starting-nod for the Orange.
Syracuse started the match’s first set off hot, taking a 3-0 lead courtesy of a kill by middle blocker Abby Nicholson and a pair of Illinois attack errors. However, the tides turned rather quickly. The Illini tied up the set at 7-7 and both teams fought a close battle up until the media timeout.
It was all Illinois from that point on. The Illini won seven of the final nine points to win the first set 25-17 and take a 1-0 lead.
Illinois carried that momentum into the second set, starting with a 4-0 lead. The Orange continued to fall into a deeper deficit before outside hitter Kiernan Stamey rattled off a string of kills to cut the Illini’s lead to four.
However, Stamey’s performance was not enough to get the job done. Syracuse lost the second set by the same score as the first, 25-17, with Illinois winning six of the final eight points.
The third set started in a similar fashion for the Illini as the second. Illinois took an initial 5-0 lead and continued to build upon it. The Orange lost the third set 25-14 and were officially swept for the second time this weekend.
SU struggled to get rolling offensively, finishing the match with 31 kills, while Illinois tallied 47. Stamey led Syracuse with 13 kills, while sophomore outside hitter Marie Laurio had 11.
Offensively, the Orange were inefficient with just a .125 hitting percentage, compared to the Illini at a .400.
Syracuse still has not won a game since Oct. 22, 2025. Its next opportunity to snap the losing streak is on Thursday at 6:00 p.m. against Howard (0-1, 0-0 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference).
For coverage of the Orange vs. Bison and the rest of Syracuse Volleyball’s season, follow @ZacVentola and @CitrusTVSports on X.
