The Bryant volleyball team fell to Binghamton to close the regular season on Sunday at the Chace. The Bulldogs finish with a 6-4 record in America East play, and will either be the #2 or #3 seed at next weekend's conference tournament.
Caroline Kennedy led the offense with eight kills, Josie Deluga had a match-high 13 digs, and Abby Rae posted a career-high five service aces.
Coach Garlacy's Comments: "Credit to Binghamton who made some amazing defensive plays. Josie played so tough and scrappy at libero and the team battled hard, but were not able to overcome the emotion of the day. Looking forward to the conference tournament!"
Binghamton 3, Bryant 0 (25-21, 25-20, 25-17)
Records: BRY (19-11, 6-4 AE), BING (17-7, 8-2 AE)
How it Happened
Set 1: Binghamton started the match on a 3-0 run, eventually extending their early lead to five at 8-3. Bryant responded in swift fashion, rattling off an 8-1 run to take a two-point lead and force the Bearcats into a timeout. The Bulldogs led by as many as four in the set's second half, but Binghamton clawed back, scoring the final five points for the set win. Rae had three of her five aces during Bryant's early run.
Set 2: The Bearcats opened up a three-point lead to start the second, but the Bulldogs came back with another run, this time scoring five in a row to take a 6-4 lead. Bryant maintained that advantage for much of the set until a 3-0 run gave Binghamton a 17-16 lead. The Bulldogs briefly took the lead back at 18-17, but the Bearcats used a final push to win by five. Kennedy and Riley James combined for seven kills in the set.
Set 3: Binghamton once again took the lead to open the set, this time holding on to it throughout. The Bearcats extended their lead to seven early on, but a 6-0 Bulldog run cut the gap to one at 10-9. That was as close as Bryant would get, with Binghamton pulling away for the set and match win. Aubrey Lapour had four kills and Rae had her other two aces for the Bulldogs in the final set.
Bulldog Notes and Notables
- Caroline Kennedy led five different Bryant players with at least four kills in the match. She sits at 1267 career kills after her final regular season game, one of three players in D-I program history to reach 1200 in a career.
- Josie Deluga started at libero for the second straight game, posting double-digit digs for the seventh time this year and fifth in her last six appearances.
- Alysa Wright finished the match with four kills and two blocks. She heads into the postseason as the team leader in kills, blocks, and total points.
- The Bulldogs finish with a 10-2 home record, their eighth consecutive winning season at the Chace.
- Wright, James, and Rae were honored alongside fellow seniors Maggie Ryan, Emma McGovern, and Mia Cergol prior to the game. The group has amassed 61 wins so far during their time in Smithfield.
- Graduate students Haley O'Brien and Caroline Kennedy also played their final games at home. The two have seen Bryant go 39-14 (.736 winning %) at the Chace during their tenure.
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