Bulls Split Final Day Of WNY Invite

Saturday, September 11

Buffalo, NY

10:00 am

4-4,0-0MAC

West Virginia

8-0,0-0Big 12

West Virginia

Buffalo

9/11/2021 6:32:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

BUFFALO, NY – The University at Buffalo volleyball team split its two matches on Saturday as Buffalo lost 3-1 to undefeated West Virginia before closing out the day with a 3-0 sweep of Canisius. UB is now 5-4 on the season.

In the opening match on Saturday, the Bulls hung tough with the undefeated West Virginia Mountaineers as UB forced WVU into a fourth set for just the second time this year.

The Mountaineers took the contest 25-23, 25-15, 22-25, 25-21 as West Virginia outhit Buffalo, .258 to .176. Buffalo trailed early in the opening set but fought their way back to tie it up and UB would end up taking a 21-18 lead, before the Mountaineers scored three straight to tie it up. With the set tied at 22-22, WVU scored the next two points and UB managed to fight off one set point, but the Mountaineers took the opening set, 25-23.

West Virginia hit .406 in the second set to take a 2-0 lead in the match, but the Bulls had an answer in the third. A block form Olivia DeBortoli and Milla Malik opened a 12-9 advantage and Buffalo extended that lead to 22-17 with a pair of kills from Stacia Gollogly and one from freshman Maria Futey. WVU would fight of three set points, but a kill form Futey claimed the set for UB.

UB opened the fourth set on a 7-2 run and continued to lead 14-9, but a 13-4 run for West Virginia gave it the lead. Buffalo fought off two set points, but ultimately dropped the set, 25-21.

Futey led the Bulls with 14 kills in the match, while Malik added 12. Emma Gielas and Courtney Okwara each added six kills. Freshman Mandy Leigh had 40 assists, running the Buffalo offense.

Defensively, freshman Hannah Jacoby had a career-high 18 digs, while Futey completed the double-double with 15 digs and Kyndal Bacon finished with 13. Leigh chipped in nine. UB also finished with 7.0 blocks, led by five from Okwara.

In the second match on Saturday, the Bulls rode the wave of a dominant first set, winning the match 25-10, 25-21, 25-21. UB hit .316 for the contest, opposed to just .196 for Canisius.

The Bulls raced out to the 7-2 lead in the opening set and a 14-4 run gave the Bulls a 21-6 advantage. A kill from Malik clinched the first set. As a team, the Bulls had just one hitting error in the first set.

Canisius got out to the 2-0 lead in the second set, but it would be its only lead of the set. Buffalo then scored the next five points and never looked back as another kill from Malik clinched the set, 25-21.

The third set was the tightest as UB led for much of it, but Canisius did take a late lead at 19-18. However, from there the Bulls scored the next five points, capped off on a solo block from Gielas to give UB the 23-19 lead. The Bulls would score the final two points of the match on kills from DeBortoli and Gielas to clinch the match.

Malik led the Bulls with 17 kills as she hit .419 on the day. DeBortoli added 10 kills and hit .471, while Gielas and Okwara each finished with eight kills.

Leigh had 36 assists and three of UB's five aces.

Defensively, Jacoby finished with a match-high 17 digs as she earned All-Tournament team honors.

The Bulls close out non-conference play next weekend at the Old Dominion Invite. Buffalo opens the weekend on Friday at 10am against Norfolk State and then they face the host Monarchs at 6pm. The Bulls finish it on Saturday against Radford.