Syracuse Volleyball Hits Speed Bump After Undefeated Start
Syracuse Volleyball (6-2, 0-0 ACC) entered this weekend riding high after a second straight 6-0 start. A home-and-home series with Colgate (4-5, 0-0 Patriot League) quickly took the wind out of SU’s sails.
The Orange fell 3-1 in back-to-back contests with the Raiders as Syracuse’s losing streak to its in-state rival grew to six games.
Both contests followed a similar script: Colgate’s attack overwhelmed an outmatched Syracuse defense. The Orange allowed a season-high .287 hitting percentage on Friday and a .213 hitting percentage on Saturday. In three straight contests, SU’s opponents have recorded a hitting percentage north of .200.
The Raiders’ attack came from all sides. Outside hitter Milan Bayless recorded 32 kills across the two matches. Right-side hitter Tiana Owens added 29 of her own. Middle blocker Maddie Rudolph had 12 kills on a team-high .632 hitting percentage on Saturday.
Syracuse head coach Bakeer Ganesharatnam made changes to the lineup across the weekend in an effort to combat the relentless Colgate offense. Outside hitter Skylar George sat out the final two sets of Saturday’s match after playing all but one set since SU met Le Moyne on Aug. 31. George put up a season-low .043 hitting percentage in Saturday’s loss.
Middle blocker Oreva Evivie sat out all of Friday’s match, but was in the starting lineup on Saturday and played all four sets. The grad student recorded season highs in kills (7) and points (8.5) in the defeat.
SU’s offense continues to operate through familiar faces. Outside hitter Gabby McLaughlin continues to shine as SU’s top offensive force. The team captain notched her fifth and sixth double-doubles of the season in this weekend’s series. McLaughlin’s 112 kills and 122.5 points lead the Orange and rank sixth in the ACC.
Fellow captain and Nevada transfer Tehya Maeva earned 49 assists on Friday and 40 on Saturday for her two highest totals of the season. The junior’s 257 assists this season rank fourth in the conference.
Following Saturday’s home defeat, Ganesharatnam was not pleased with the Orange faithful. “This is Syracuse, and we have a handful of Colgate fans, and they were louder than the entire gym,” Ganesharatnam said.
“We want the crowd to get behind this team….This crowd can make a huge difference….This crowd can help this team. They should get off the phone and get into the match, and make some noise.”
Later on in Saturday’s postgame press conference, Ganesharatnam would interrupt the response of freshman Marie Laurio after she was asked if she agreed with his assessment of the importance of fan support.
From off to the side of the room, he noted the difference in environments between the two central New York gyms.
“[Colgate] had the band in the gym,” Ganesharatnam said. “15 people. And guess what? Colgate played Syracuse in football [Friday night]. And they had 15 people [in their band at the volleyball game]. I have not seen our band in two years in our gym….What are they doing? We have more than one team to support.”
Orange fans have the chance to respond to Ganesharatnam’s comments when Syracuse welcomes Siena to the Women’s Building at 6 p.m. Friday.
For updates on every match of this Syracuse volleyball season, follow @ryancroke_ and @CitrusTVSports on X/Twitter.
