Samaniego
JESSE CAREY
0
Elmira Elmira 0-1,0-0 Empire 8
3
Winner Marywood MWD 1-0,0-0 MAC Freedom
Elmira Elmira
0-1,0-0 Empire 8
0
Final
3
Marywood MWD
1-0,0-0 MAC Freedom
Winner
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 F
Elmira Elmira 14 11 14 (0)
Marywood MWD 25 25 25 (3)

Game Recap: Women's Volleyball |

Women’s Volleyball Sweeps Elmira in Season-Opening Victory

Scranton, Pa.- The Marywood University women's volleyball team opened the 2026 season in convincing fashion Tuesday night, sweeping Elmira College, 25-14, 25-11, 25-14, at Insalaco Arena.

The Pacers controlled the match from the opening points, using a balanced offensive attack and strong serving to pull away from the Soaring Eagles in each of the three sets. Marywood held advantages in kills, 29-13, assists, 27-13, digs, 28-20, and service aces, 10-2.

Carolina Samaniego led Marywood offensively with nine kills on 16 attacks. She also contributed five digs, a service ace and a block. Taylor Hallam and Taylor Howard both recorded five kills, while Gracee Work chipped in four.

Ayla Bransford helped orchestrate the offense with 18 assists, while Catie Woolf paced the defensive effort with nine digs. Bransford also added five digs and two block assists, and Hallam finished with a solo block and two block assists.

Marywood established control early in the opening set. After Marywood and Elmira scored the first point, the Pacers responded with a 6-0 run that included consecutive kills from Samaniego, an Elmira attack error and a service ace from Woolf. Marywood continued to build its advantage and eventually took an 18-9 lead before closing the set.

The Pacers were even more dominant in the second set. Marywood jumped out to a 6-1 advantage and extended the lead to 13-5 following a series of Elmira attack errors and strong serving from Samaniego. Woolf later served consecutive points that helped Marywood stretch its advantage to 19-7, and the Pacers closed out the set, 25-11.

The Soaring Eagles opened the third set with a 3-0 lead, but Marywood quickly erased the deficit. Howard's kill put the Pacers on the board, and a Woolf service ace followed by consecutive Samaniego kills helped Marywood take a 7-4 lead. Elmira briefly closed the gap, but Marywood steadily rebuilt its advantage, taking a 16-10 lead before moving ahead 22-14. The Pacers then finished the sweep with a 25-14 third set victory.

Marywood's serving proved particularly effective throughout the match, as the Pacers recorded 10 aces. Woolf, Andrea Fraga, Madison Smith, and Piper Herauf each contributed service aces, with Smith recording back-to-back aces during the decisive stretch of the third set.
 
The Pacers (1-0) will return to action this weekend at the Keuka Invitational, which gets underway Friday, Sept. 4. Marywood will open tournament play against host Keuka College at 4 p.m. before taking on Keystone College at 6 p.m.
 
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