William Smith volleyball earned the second ranked victory in program history Friday afternoon, rallying from an early deficit to defeat No. 22 Christopher Newport 3-1 in the opening match of the William Paterson Tournament.
The Herons improved to 3-1 on the season, while the Captains dropped to 2-3. William Smith overcame a 25-19 loss in the opening set by taking the next three, winning 25-22, 25-16 and 25-23.
First-year Cassidy Breuer led the way with a match-high 19 kills, tying her career best. She also recorded 12 digs for her second double-double of the season while adding two blocks, two service aces and an assist.
Junior Arielle Newsome contributed eight kills while hitting .222 and added four digs, three blocks, an assist and an ace. Junior Emily Fulton finished with seven kills and 10 digs, while junior libero Kali Vanderhoof paced the Herons defensively with a season-high 22 digs.
William Smith finished with 48 kills while hitting .181 as a team. Christopher Newport had 51 kills but hit .134. The Captains held advantages in assists and digs, but the Herons countered with nine service aces compared with eight for Christopher Newport. William Smith also finished with seven blocks.
After dropping the opening set, the Herons steadily took control. Breuer recorded four kills in the second set, while William Smith capitalized on 10 Christopher Newport hitting errors. The Herons then forced 12 errors in the third set before closing out the match in a tight fourth set, with Newsome delivering the decisive kill.
William Smith returns to action Saturday with two more matches. The Herons face Centenary at 1 p.m. before meeting host William Paterson at 3 p.m.
Kyle leads sports coverage and hosts the Concrete Jungle podcast. Have a lead or question? Send it to kyle@fingerlakes1.com.