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The third-seeded Oswego State volleyball team battled to a come-from-behind 3-2 (25-16, 19-25, 16-15, 25-19, 16-14) victory over No. 6 Fredonia in the first round of the SUNYAC Championship in No. 1 Brockport's Tuttle Gymnasium. With the win, the Lakers improve to 25-9, and most importantly, advance to the semifinal round to face No. 2 New Paltz at 3 p.m. on Saturday. The 25 victories is the most by a Laker squad since the 1994 team posted 42 wins.
After taking the first set in easy fashion, Oswego dropped its next two sets to the Blue Devils, setting up the comeback situation. The Lakers went down 3-0 early in the fourth set but fought back with two four-point rallies to force a decisive fifth set. In the final set, Fredonia grabbed a 10-6 advantage, leaving a grim outlook for Oswego. The Lakers would not fade away, however, putting together three-straight points to force a Blue Devil timeout. In all, Oswego took 10 of the set's final 14 points, including the game-winning kill by senior Kelsey Dillon to continue its playoff push.
Individually, Megan Russell paced the offense with an 18-kill night and a .500 hitting percentage. A majority of those kills were set up by one of Lauren Edwards' 28 assists. Edwards was helped by junior classmate Lindsey Champitto's 16 assists. Russell was aided by freshman Ariel Murawski's 14 kills and Dillon's 11.
Five Lakers finished with double-figure digs, led by senior Rachael Ruggaber's 28. Junior Emma Moriarty chipped in 18 while Champitto added 16. Rounding out the quintet was Edwards and senior Mary Montagnola, each registering 13.
On defense, four Oswego players ended with three blocks. Russell, Moriarty and freshman Alison Sullivan had three block assists apiece while Dillon had two assists to go along with a solo.
Saturday's semifinal matchup with the New Paltz feature two of the New York Region's best, as the NCAA Nov. 5 regional rankings have the Hawks at No. 7 and the Lakers at No. 9.
