BRONX, N.Y. – Taking a statement win in the final weeks of the regular season, Fordham University volleyball returned to the Rose Hill Gym and defeated Davidson in straight sets Saturday night. The win brings the Rams one step closer to locking up a playoff spot, with now just five matches left in the regular season heading into tomorrow.
Fordham would capture a well contested opening set, battling back early to take a slim lead and keep Davidson at bay for the remainder of the frame. The second stage featured much of the same, as neither team led by more than two points until late in the set, where the Rams pulled out a victory in extra points to take a 2-0 lead in the match. A convincing third period would see Fordham take the lead early on, before a big run late in the set gave them a straight set victory to take sole possession of fourth place in the Atlantic 10 standings.
"Incredible team effort tonight," said Head Coach Ian Choi. "Not only was the offense well-balanced, our team rallied together and didn't compound mistakes. We stayed present and confident throughout. Very proud of everyone on this squad."
A pair of players would pace the Fordham attack as Whitley Moody and Zoe Talabong rattled off 12 kills apiece, tallying more than half of the Rams' 44 hammers on the night, hitting .261 as a team. With eight kills Audrey Brown would follow that duo, while Mackenzie Colvin led the way in the assists department for the first time this season, dishing out a career-best 20 assists, just ahead of 18 from Whitney Woodrow.
On the defensive end Moody would pace the team as well, collecting 13 digs, followed by 11 from Talabong, and eight from Mallory Lipski, out of 50 total. Tallying six block assists and one solo rejection, Nailah Jenkins would lead the efforts at the tape Saturday, while also adding five kills, and Lorenza Rosenkilde tallied two assisted blocks and a solo as well.
Despite an early run by the home side, Fordham and Davidson would be tied 7-7 early, before Davidson would take as much as a five point lead at 14-9. Scoring six of the next seven points, Fordham would tie the match at 15-all, to create a frenzy towards the final 10 points in set one. Drawing once more at 19-19, Fordham would take the lead and keep the Wildcats from tying again, taking the opening set by two.
The two sides would continue back-and-forth play into the second stanza, with neither side mustering more than a two point advantage for much of the set. With the score knotted at 14, the Rams would score three of the next four points to take a three point lead, but Davidson once again managed to keep the match interesting late with a run of their own. Drawing level late in the set, Fordham would go just beyond the 25-point cap to take set two 26-24.
Taking control much earlier in the third set, Fordham took a three point lead quickly and would maintain that advantage for much of the set. After the Wildcats managed to work their way back into the set at 14-12, the Rams would score six straight points to bring them just five points away from sweeping a key match late in the season. Davidson put together a small run late, but earning six points off the serve of specialist Lola Fernandez, and a strong presence on the block gave the Rams what they needed to see out the victory.
With now just five matches to go in the 2023 regular season, the Rams will look to sweep the season series tomorrow with Davidson, when the two sides square off again from the Rose Hill Gym at 1:00 p.m. and live on ESPN+.
