Friday, September 3
Tuscaloosa, AL
11:00 am
2-2,0-0MAC
3
vs
1
Southern Mississippi
-41,00 CUSA
1
2
3
4
F
Southern Miss.
21
25
22
21
1
Buffalo
25
19
25
25
3
Bulls Split Friday Action
9/3/2021 8:44:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
TUSCALOOSA, AL – The University at Buffalo volleyball team split its two matches on Friday at the first day of the Alabama Invite. The Bulls began the day with a 3-1 win over Southern Mississippi and then concluded the night with a 3-0 loss to the host Alabama Crimson Tide.
The Bulls opened Friday with an impressive victory over Southern Mississippi, handing the Golden Eagles their first loss of the year. Buffalo took the contest 25-21, 19-25, 25-22, 25-21 as UB outhit Southern Mississippi, .181 to .164. The Bulls did an excellent job in serve receive, as the Golden Eagles had zero aces for the match.
UB was strong defensively from the start, registering four blocks in the opening set. A block from junior Courtney Okwara and freshman Mandy Leigh opened up a 9-4 lead. Another block, this time from junior Abby Leigh and sophomore Stacia Gollogly, extend the Buffalo lead to 18-11. The Golden Eagles would cut into the Buffalo lead, pulling within three late, but a kill from Abby Leigh clinched the opening set.
Southern Miss tied things up in the second set, but UB regained the advantage with a win in the third, spearheaded by sophomore Milla Malik, who had six kills in the third set alone. Buffalo held a slim 11-10 lead when the Bulls rattled off four straight points, capped off by a kill from freshman Maria Futey. The set would remain close as the Golden Eagles pulled within one at 23-22, however back-to-back kills from Futey and Malik ended the set, giving the Bulls the lead in the match again.
The Bulls then dominated for much of the fourth set, but Southern Mississippi made a late run to keep things interesting. Buffalo opened the set on a 14-5 run and a kill from Mandy Leigh increased the lead to 21-11. A 10-3 Golden Eagles run cut the Buffalo lead to just 23-21, but Southern Miss would not score again as Abby Leigh answered with a kill and the match ended on a Southern Miss attack error.
Malik led the Bulls with 16 kills, while Futey added a season-high 13. Abby Leigh finished with nine kills and Okwara had eight. Mandy Leigh was in control running the offense as she finished with 42 assists, to go along with two aces, 12 digs, and a kill.
The Bulls had 10 aces in the match, led by three from Futey and two each from the Leigh sisters. Malik had one, as did senior Kyndal Bacon and freshman Hannah Jacoby.
Defensively, Mandy Leigh was tied for team high honors in digs with Futey as they both had 12, to complete double-doubles. Jacoby, their fellow classmate, also finished in double figures with 10.
Okwara paced the way in the blocking department as she had five total blocks, including two solos. Abby Leigh finished with three and Gollogly had two.
In the nightcap, Alabama took the match 25-18, 25-14, 25-13 as the Crimson Tide hit .309 for the match, opposed to 127 for the Bulls. UB would lead 10-5 early in the first set, but Alabama answered with a 15-3 run and never looked back in the match.
Futey led Buffalo with 11 kills as she hit .242 for the match. Malik added six kills and Abby Leigh had five. Mandy Leigh finished with two kills and a match-high 22 assists.
After a morning match where Buffalo's opponent had zero service aces, Alabama had 11 aces in the match, while UB had just one.
Defensively, Mandy Leigh led UB with eight digs, while Malik and Futey each had seven. Junior Jenna Sonnenberg, who played just the third set, finished with six digs.
Buffalo concludes action on Saturday morning when it faces Troy at 11am ET in the final match of the Alabama Invite.
The Bulls opened Friday with an impressive victory over Southern Mississippi, handing the Golden Eagles their first loss of the year. Buffalo took the contest 25-21, 19-25, 25-22, 25-21 as UB outhit Southern Mississippi, .181 to .164. The Bulls did an excellent job in serve receive, as the Golden Eagles had zero aces for the match.
UB was strong defensively from the start, registering four blocks in the opening set. A block from junior Courtney Okwara and freshman Mandy Leigh opened up a 9-4 lead. Another block, this time from junior Abby Leigh and sophomore Stacia Gollogly, extend the Buffalo lead to 18-11. The Golden Eagles would cut into the Buffalo lead, pulling within three late, but a kill from Abby Leigh clinched the opening set.
Southern Miss tied things up in the second set, but UB regained the advantage with a win in the third, spearheaded by sophomore Milla Malik, who had six kills in the third set alone. Buffalo held a slim 11-10 lead when the Bulls rattled off four straight points, capped off by a kill from freshman Maria Futey. The set would remain close as the Golden Eagles pulled within one at 23-22, however back-to-back kills from Futey and Malik ended the set, giving the Bulls the lead in the match again.
The Bulls then dominated for much of the fourth set, but Southern Mississippi made a late run to keep things interesting. Buffalo opened the set on a 14-5 run and a kill from Mandy Leigh increased the lead to 21-11. A 10-3 Golden Eagles run cut the Buffalo lead to just 23-21, but Southern Miss would not score again as Abby Leigh answered with a kill and the match ended on a Southern Miss attack error.
Malik led the Bulls with 16 kills, while Futey added a season-high 13. Abby Leigh finished with nine kills and Okwara had eight. Mandy Leigh was in control running the offense as she finished with 42 assists, to go along with two aces, 12 digs, and a kill.
The Bulls had 10 aces in the match, led by three from Futey and two each from the Leigh sisters. Malik had one, as did senior Kyndal Bacon and freshman Hannah Jacoby.
Defensively, Mandy Leigh was tied for team high honors in digs with Futey as they both had 12, to complete double-doubles. Jacoby, their fellow classmate, also finished in double figures with 10.
Okwara paced the way in the blocking department as she had five total blocks, including two solos. Abby Leigh finished with three and Gollogly had two.
In the nightcap, Alabama took the match 25-18, 25-14, 25-13 as the Crimson Tide hit .309 for the match, opposed to 127 for the Bulls. UB would lead 10-5 early in the first set, but Alabama answered with a 15-3 run and never looked back in the match.
Futey led Buffalo with 11 kills as she hit .242 for the match. Malik added six kills and Abby Leigh had five. Mandy Leigh finished with two kills and a match-high 22 assists.
After a morning match where Buffalo's opponent had zero service aces, Alabama had 11 aces in the match, while UB had just one.
Defensively, Mandy Leigh led UB with eight digs, while Malik and Futey each had seven. Junior Jenna Sonnenberg, who played just the third set, finished with six digs.
Buffalo concludes action on Saturday morning when it faces Troy at 11am ET in the final match of the Alabama Invite.
Team Stats
USM
UB
Kills
52
51
Errors
29
24
Attempts
140
149
Hitting %
.164
.181
Points
60
69
Assists
48
46
Aces
0
10
Blocks
8
8
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
16
Aces
1
Blocks
2
Kills
13
Aces
3
Blocks
1
Kills
9
Aces
2
Blocks
3
Kills
8
Aces
0
Blocks
5
Players Mentioned
S
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's Volleyball
OH/RS
/ Women's Volleyball
DS
/ Women's VolleyballOH/MB
/ Women's Volleyball
S
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's VolleyballMB
/ Women's Volleyball
L/DS
/ Women's VolleyballBuffalo Classic Day 3
Monday, September 08
Buffalo Classic Day 2
Monday, September 08
Buffalo Classic Day 1
Monday, September 08
Buffalo Invite 2025 - Women's Volleyball (Day 3)
Monday, August 11
