Volleyball continues to dominate

The volleyball team came into this season with high expectations. The squad had the formula for success: a roster full of experienced upperclassmen.

Through six games, it appears those expectations were justified.

The Bulls (6-0) traveled to Ithaca for the Cornell Tournament this weekend hoping to stay perfect after going undefeated in their first three matches last weekend. The Bulls again swept their three matches.

Their closest call came during the second match of the weekend against Cornell (1-2).

Cornell fought back from a five-point first-set deficit to tie Buffalo at 22. With the game tied and just three points to go, the Bulls seemed to be in jeopardy of losing their first opening set of the year.

But they were able to secure those final points with kills from senior outside hitter Christine Fritsche and a game point by junior outside hitter Liz Scott. After the tough first set, the team didn't look back as the Bulls cruised to two straight 11-point victories - sweeping the match against the Big Red.

"We took Cornell's best shot in the first set," said head coach Todd Kress. "And then I think we played some of our best volleyball of the season in the second and third sets."

Sophomore outside hitter Tahleia Bishop had a match-high 13 kills and 15.5 points to lead Buffalo. Senior setter Dani Reinert, who set up teammates all match, recorded 17 assists for the Bulls.

In their first match of the weekend, the Bulls defeated Iona (1-5), 3-1. It was the first time the team needed four sets to down an opponent this season.

"I thought the Iona match was nice that we didn't play our best volleyball, but we still found a way to pull out a win," Kress said.

Fritsche led the team with 18.5 points and 16 kills to go along with 10 digs. Senior libero Kelly Svoboda tallied a match-high 30 digs.

In the final match of the tournament, Buffalo defeated Bucknell (4-2), 3-0, and won by at least 10 points in each set.

After the UB Invite Aug. 30-31, Kress said he wanted more players involved during the match to get a better team effort. This game showed those improvements.

"We got good production from a number of different players, both offensively and defensively," Kress said. "We controlled the tempo of the game very well and cut down on our unforced errors."

Though the Bulls have been impressive in piecing together a six-match win streak, he still thinks they need to improve in some areas.

"We already have a list of things that we need to improve on," Kress said. "And hopefully we can be able to make our weaknesses our strengths and keep moving forward."

The Bulls will look to continue their dominant play with a long road trip to the Georgia State Tournament this weekend. They will first face Davidson (5-1) on Friday at 5 p.m. in Atlanta, Ga.

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