Chicopee, Mass. - The Albertus Magnus College women's volleyball team opened up the 2017 season with a 1-1 record following a pair of road matches against Elms College and Castleton on Friday evening. The Falcons fell in match one to the Blazers, 3-1, but managed to bounce back in match two, 3-0, versus the Spartans.

TEAM RECORDS: Albertus Magnus (1-1) | Elms (1-0) | Castleton (0-1)

MATCH 1 FINAL: Elms 3 | Albertus Magnus 1
MATCH 1 SCORES: 25-21 (EC), 25-14 (AMC), 26-24 (EC) and 25-23 (AMC)

HOW IT HAPPENED

Albertus Magnus opened the 2017 season with a 3-1 loss to Elms College as part of the Blazer Invitational on Friday evening.

Elms secured the "W" in set one, 25-21, despite the visitors cutting the lead to within one, 21-20, after a kill from freshman Genesis Cora Luquis (Meriden, Conn.).

The Falcons, however, came out for vengeance in set two, defeating the hosts 25-14. The visitors opened the set with the 6-2 lead, but the Blazers tied the set, 8-8, forcing the Falcons to call a timeout to regroup. Following the brief break, Albertus Magnus came together as a team and closed out the frame with a 17-6 run.

But, Elms claimed the final two sets to secure its first win of the season while Albertus Magnus earned its first lost. The Falcons fought all the way till the end falling in both sets by just two points.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Both Albertus Magnus and Elms College registered 43 kills while the Falcons held a 11-8 edge over the Blazers in service aces.
• The Blazers' offense registered 93 digs and assisted 41 kills.
• The Falcons posted 87 digs and 39 assists.
• Danielle Redding led the hosts with 15 kills, four digs, two blocks and an assist.
• Cora Luquis finished her first collegiate game with nine kills and 15 digs.
• Sophomore Ashley David (West Islip, N.Y.) and senior Marielis Muriel (New Haven, Conn.) both registered a double-double for the Falcons.

CAREER HIGH NOTES

• Sophomore Ashley David (West Islip, N.Y.) set a new career-high in kills with 15.
• Senior Marielis Muriel (New Haven, Conn.) recorded a new career-high 31 assists.
• Sophomore Jesselle Guzman (Santa Teresa, N.M.) posted a career-high 18 digs.

MATCH 2 FINAL: Albertus Magnus 3 | Castleton 0
MATCH 2 SCORES: 25-18 (AMC), 25-17 (AMC) and 25-21 (AMC)

HOW IT HAPPENED

Despite dropping the season opener to Elms, 3-1, Albertus Magnus College came together and took match two from Castleton in straight sets to improve to 1-1 overall. 

In the first frame, Albertus Magnus found themselves ahead 23-14 following a 15-6 run. The Spartans managed to rally off four straight points to cut the lead, but the Falcons secured the first set win, 25-18.

Albertus Magnus continued to control the momentum of the match as the Falcons held a five-point lead, 18-12, forcing the Spartans to use a timeout. Despite using the timeout to regroup, Castleton fell in set two, 25-17.

Castleton and Albertus Magnus battled back-and-forth in the final set as the set was tied, 18-18, following a kill from David. The Falcons rallied together a 6-1 run to push their lead to five, 24-19, before a kill from Cora Luquis sealed the deal with her 11th kill of the match.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Albertus Magnus held a 35-19 edge in kills while Castleton led in digs 70-64.
• Kimberly Jackson led the Spartans with six kills and 10 digs.
• Cora Luquis recorded her first collegiate double-double following an 11 kill and 11 dig performance.
• Freshman Delaney Ruiz (Meriden, Conn.) rounded out the double-digit scorers for the Falcons with 10 kills.

UP NEXT
The Falcons wrap up the 2017 Blazer Invitational tomorrow, Sept. 2 against SUNY Cobleskill at 12 p.m. in Chicopee, Mass.