Saturday, August 26
Philadelphia, Pa.
4:30 PM
Lehigh University
2-0,0-0Patriot
3
vs
2
Iona
1-2,0-0MAAC
1
2
3
4
5
F
Lehigh
15
25
18
25
15
3
Iona
25
18
25
21
6
2
Photo by: Hannahally Photography
Volleyball Pulls Off Comeback, Defeats Iona 3-2
8/26/2023 7:32:00 PM | Volleyball
Mountain Hawks Win In Five Sets On Consecutive Days
PHILADELPHIA – Last night, the Lehigh University volleyball team opened their season with a thrilling five-set victory over LIU. Today against Iona on day two of the Cherry & White Challenge, they did it again.
Lehigh pulled off a come-from-behind victory over the Iona Gaels, winning the final two sets to earn the win. After forcing a fifth set, the Mountain Hawks dominated, scoring seven unanswered points down the stretch.
The Gaels set the pace early, jumping ahead to an 8-4 lead in the opening frame. A 4-0 run led by two kills from Dakota Hartman helped Lehigh crawl back into contention. The set remained closely contested up until the teams were tied a 12 apiece, when Iona began to pull away. The Gaels concluded the first set on a 13-3 run, awarding them the first set victory of the afternoon.
After dropping a tough first set to Iona, Lehigh returned the favor in the second. The Mountain Hawks opened the second set on a hot note, quickly earning an 11-4 advantage thanks to two aces from Madison McCartney and a big solo block by Makena Smith. Lehigh maintained control the whole way through, cruising to a 25-18 second set win.
The third set began with neither side able to gain a significant advantage. With the score closely contested at 12-11 in favor of Iona, the Gaels orchestrated an 8-2 run to give themselves a seven-point cushion. Iona rode its newfound momentum to a 25-18 third set victory.
The Gaels picked up where they left off to begin the next set, garnering a 10-4 advantage early on. Despite this, the Mountain Hawks showed great resiliency and crawled back into contention. After managing to tie the set at 17 apiece, Lehigh carried out an 8-4 run to win the set. For the second consecutive day, the Mountain Hawks were headed to a fifth and final set.
Lehigh began the fifth and final set ready to play. The Mountain Hawks set the tone, scoring the first two points of the set off an Emily Stewart kill and a Makena Smith solo block. Lehigh dominated down the stretch, pulling off a 7-0 run to win the final set 15-6, completing an epic comeback in the process.
The Mountain Hawks were led by junior Megan Schulte, who recorded 13 kills on the day. Kyleigh Brown led the team with 17 digs while Makena Smith dominated with five solo blocks.
"Having a deep bench with players hungry to compete was really key," said head coach Alexa Keckler on the win. "Today's match was a real test to our blocking and defense."
Lehigh's final match of the Cherry & White Classic will be against the hosting Temple Owls. First touch is scheduled for 2 p.m. and will be streamed on ESPN+.
"Looking to tomorrow, we will need to continue improving upon our offensive connections and be prepared to fire on all cylinders," said Keckler. "Temple has a great outside that we will need to shut down as well."
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Like Lehigh Volleyball on Facebook, follow on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
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Lehigh pulled off a come-from-behind victory over the Iona Gaels, winning the final two sets to earn the win. After forcing a fifth set, the Mountain Hawks dominated, scoring seven unanswered points down the stretch.
The Gaels set the pace early, jumping ahead to an 8-4 lead in the opening frame. A 4-0 run led by two kills from Dakota Hartman helped Lehigh crawl back into contention. The set remained closely contested up until the teams were tied a 12 apiece, when Iona began to pull away. The Gaels concluded the first set on a 13-3 run, awarding them the first set victory of the afternoon.
After dropping a tough first set to Iona, Lehigh returned the favor in the second. The Mountain Hawks opened the second set on a hot note, quickly earning an 11-4 advantage thanks to two aces from Madison McCartney and a big solo block by Makena Smith. Lehigh maintained control the whole way through, cruising to a 25-18 second set win.
The third set began with neither side able to gain a significant advantage. With the score closely contested at 12-11 in favor of Iona, the Gaels orchestrated an 8-2 run to give themselves a seven-point cushion. Iona rode its newfound momentum to a 25-18 third set victory.
The Gaels picked up where they left off to begin the next set, garnering a 10-4 advantage early on. Despite this, the Mountain Hawks showed great resiliency and crawled back into contention. After managing to tie the set at 17 apiece, Lehigh carried out an 8-4 run to win the set. For the second consecutive day, the Mountain Hawks were headed to a fifth and final set.
Lehigh began the fifth and final set ready to play. The Mountain Hawks set the tone, scoring the first two points of the set off an Emily Stewart kill and a Makena Smith solo block. Lehigh dominated down the stretch, pulling off a 7-0 run to win the final set 15-6, completing an epic comeback in the process.
The Mountain Hawks were led by junior Megan Schulte, who recorded 13 kills on the day. Kyleigh Brown led the team with 17 digs while Makena Smith dominated with five solo blocks.
"Having a deep bench with players hungry to compete was really key," said head coach Alexa Keckler on the win. "Today's match was a real test to our blocking and defense."
Lehigh's final match of the Cherry & White Classic will be against the hosting Temple Owls. First touch is scheduled for 2 p.m. and will be streamed on ESPN+.
"Looking to tomorrow, we will need to continue improving upon our offensive connections and be prepared to fire on all cylinders," said Keckler. "Temple has a great outside that we will need to shut down as well."
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Like Lehigh Volleyball on Facebook, follow on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
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Team Stats
Lehigh
Iona
Kills
47
48
Errors
17
25
Attempts
135
150
Hitting %
.222
.153
Points
67.0
64.0
Assists
44
46
Aces
11
13
Blocks
9
3
Game Leaders
Kills
13
Aces
3
Blocks
1
Kills
10
Aces
1
Blocks
0
Kills
8
Aces
0
Blocks
0
Kills
5
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Players Mentioned
L/DS
/ Volleyball
OH
/ Volleyball
MB
/ Volleyball
OH
/ Volleyball
S
/ Volleyball
MB
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