Syracuse Volleyball drops second match of back-to-back against Boston College
By Josh Solomon | @JoshSolo29
After starting the second and third sets strong, it seemed that Syracuse Volleyball was on its way to turning the corner. SU in its last few matches had been starting slow and finishing strong but did the squad turn things around?
The first set between Syracuse and Boston College was super close throughout with neither team able to jump ahead. In a blink of an eye though, BC was leading 24-21, needing just a single point to take the first set over SU. But in a matter of minutes, the Orange pulled off an amazing five-point swing and won the first set of the match 26-24. This was the first time since October 23rd that Syracuse won the first set of a game.
Building off that momentum, the ‘Cuse stormed in front to start the second set with four straight points and then another run of five in a row securing a 9-2 lead. But then BC worked its way very quickly back into the set making it just a 10-9 SU lead. After jumping out to an early lead, that momentum seemed to turn into tired legs later in the set as Boston College lit a fire scoring the final seven points of the match. The Eagles tied the game 1-1 with a 25-18 second set win.
The third set saw more of the same out of the Orange with an early 8-3 lead. But just as quick as the lead was cemented, it was once again taken away. Four points in a row for BC helped claw a comeback and even the score at 9-9. The resilience of the Eagles was truly evident in this match and was impressive to watch. Both teams fought till the end of the set, but Boston College ended up winning it 25-23. The Eagles, just like they did on Wednesday, took a 2-1 sets lead over the Orange in the match. A big reason for BC’s success was from three players with double-digit kill totals. Halle Schroder (13), Cornelia Roach (12), and Audrey Ross (11) were dominant in this match against SU.
The difference in starts came in the fourth set with Boston College taking an 8-1 lead to start the set. The Orange had a comeback of their own though eventually down just 10-9. Both SU and BC traded runs in the fourth set. The Eagles’ late run, scoring six of the final eight points, capped off the match. Boston College (14-16, 7-11 in ACC) won the fourth set 25-22 and were victorious 3-1 over Syracuse (14-16, 2-16 in ACC).
This loss marked back-to-back losses for the Orange against the Eagles. Syracuse has just two matches left in the season to secure an even .500 record. The first of those is SU’s final home match of the 2024 season against California. Cal reverse swept the ‘Cuse earlier this season and have a 12-17 record and are 4-13 in conference play. First serve of that match is on Wednesday at 1 p.m.
