With all-time kills leader and newly-enshrined Hall of Famer Kathleen O’Connor ‘14 in attendance Saturday, Cornell’s volleyball team put on quite a hitting display in a 25-13, 25-16, 25-18 sweep of Ripon inside the Small Athletic and Wellness Center.
The 25th-ranked Rams (11-6 overall, 1-0 MWC) slammed 44 kills and compiled a whopping .405 attack percentage in taking their first step toward an 11th consecutive Midwest Conference championship.
Cornell hit a staggering .727 in the opening set, connecting for 16 kills on 22 errorless swings. And the Rams were well on their way to their fifth 3-0 sweep of the season.
Ilah Perez-Johnson led the hitting parade with a match-high 14 kills and sizzling .684 attack percentage. The senior outside hitter also fired three of the team’s 12 ace serves, pushing her past current assistant coach Sydney Meeker (2017-21) for seventh place on Cornell’s career list with 144.
Ella McLaughlin delivered 11 kills on .381 hitting. Grace Marti and Kiana Manson provided eight kills apiece.
Setter Clare Green posted 33 assists and three aces. Ella Becker scooped 11 digs. Marti added three ace serves.
The Rams surrendered only four aces and held Ripon (6-14 overall, 0-3 MWC) to 24 kills.
Earlier in the week, the Rams swept Coe 3-0 at Cedar Rapids.
The Rams have garnered three consecutive wins over the Kohawks continuing from last year. The last time Cornell won 3-0 over Coe was on Sept. 16, 2016 (25-22, 25-21, 25-15) in Mount Vernon.
Utilizing early leads in first two sets, the Rams took an early 2-0 lead and easily won the third set to move to 10-6 overall before entering conference play.
The Rams held the Kohawks to only 35 kills which is the third lowest the Rams have held an opponent this year: Macalester (28) and Simpson (29).
Perez-Johnson recorded 10 kills and 13 digs for her 11th double-double of the year. She also finished with one block and two aces to move her career aces total to 141. This puts her at the heels of Sydney Meeker (2017-2021) who currently sits seventh in career aces (142).
Junior Kiana Manson led both teams with 11 kills, to go along with two digs and two blocks. Fifth-year Grace Marti and sophomore Ella McLaughlin each had seven kills on the night. Green collected 35 assists and sophomore Ella Becker had 17 digs which led both teams.
Cornell attack overwhelms Red Hawks in 3-0 sweep
October 12, 2023