CASTLETON, Vt. – Russell Sage College concluded the non-conference portion of its regular season schedule by sweeping Saturday afternoon's tri-match at Castleton that also featured Rhode Island College.
Strong defense buoyed RSC (10-6) to the pair of sweeps. The Gators limited RIC (8-2), which had a six-match winning streak snapped by RSC, and the host Spartans (8-5) to a combined .024 attack percentage across the six sets.
"We had a lot of growth against talented and hard-working teams this week," said Head Coach Rosilyn Cummings. "I'm really proud of how our group is developing and continuing to improve on and off the court."
A trio of Gators registered double-digit kills this afternoon.
Senior outside hitter Macey Salvione (Johnstown, NY/Gloversville), who started the day ranked in the top-35 nationally in kills, aces, points, and aces per-set, totaled 29 kills on. 379 hitting, 25 digs, and three aces. She recorded 20 kills on .552 hitting and 13 digs
Junior outside hitter Ashleigh Gerkman (Valatie, NY/Ichabod Crane) contributed 16 kills, 24 digs, and four aces, while junior middle hitter Aniyah Kelley (Newcastle, DE/William Penn) added 13 kills on .307 hitting and 7.0 total blocks.
Setter Emma Rainville (Castleton, NY/Columbia/Binghamton), a grad student, tallied 66 assists, while senior libero Katelyn Atchinson (Alplaus, NY/Niskayuna/Saint Rose) elevated a combined 27 RIC and Castleton attacks.
The Gators, now winners of four-straight, commence Empire 8 Conference play on Wednesday at Hartwick.
Gator Bites: RSC began the weekend leading E8 with 149 aces, 3.10 per-set…Nationally, the Gators rank 13th and 28th respectively in those stats…A dozen players returned to the court in 2024…Senior outside hitter Macey Salvione (Johnstown, NY/Gloversville), middle hitter Monalissa Carius (Hudson, NY/Hudson), a grad student, and junior middle hitter Aniyah Kelley (Newcastle, DE/William Penn) headlined the group…Head Coach Rosilyn Cummings added four newcomers including transfers senior libero Katelyn Atchinson (Alplaus, NY/Niskayuna/Saint Rose) and setter Emma Rainville (Castleton, NY/Columbia/Binghamton), a grad student, to the squad…Cummings was inducted into the SUNY Plattsburgh Athletic Hall of Fame on September 27…Salvione was announced as the E8 Player of the Week for the period ending Sunday, September 15…She commenced the weekend with 42 aces, and 0.88 aces per-set, good for eighth and 14th nationally respectively…She also topped the Conference with leading the Conference with 229.5 points and 187 kills, also among the top-35 marks in NCAA Division III...Salvione registered 43 kills on .344 hitting, eight aces and 43 digs to help RSC go 3-0 this week.
