Yesterday afternoon, the volleyball team began defense of their seven consecutive regular season league titles and four straight PSAA Tournament crowns with a 3-0 sweep of Portledge on the Swanson Gymnasium hardwood.

In a rematch of the last two PSAA Semifinal tilts, the Bears continued their dominance over the Panthers–and the rest of the league–with a their 49th consecutive league win and 44th straight home victory.

The Bears led wire-to-wire in the first set, building a 5-1 edge behind an Ella Middlekauff ace and a block and dunk from Cassandra Rohan. The Panthers pulled within 4-7, but the Bears extended their margin to 11-4 following a kill from Adelaide Tietjen and a Gillian Bernier ace. With the Bear advantage sitting at 13-8, Middlekauff took over service and nearly served the game out by leading an 11-0 run behind her three aces. Bernier recorded three kills in the stretch, including a pair of missiles, and Rohan blocked two consecutive hits to earn a point as well. Despite staring down an 8-24 deficit, Portledge rallied for three straight points before Rohan ended the 25-11 set win with a kill.

Portledge took their first lead of the match on the opening point of the second set and built an early 5-1 edge. A Rohan ace knotted the score at 5-5, but Portledge recaptured a 13-10 lead before the Bears righted the ship for good with a 7-0 run. The spurt began with a Rohan rocket and was extended by a pair of Julianna Sparacio aces. When the dust settled, The Brook held an 18-13 lead. Three kills from Bernier, a Rohan ace, and a handful of Panther errors paved the way for the Bears to claim round two, 25-15.

Despite dropping the first two sets and falling behind 5-10 in the third, the visitors did not go down without a fight. Some gritty defense and a pair of aces gave the Panthers a 15-13 edge to prompt a Stony Brook timeout. Out of the break, Rohan took over, scoring the next four points by herself with a touch kill and a trio of aces to give the Blue & White a lead they would not give back. A Bernier ace gave the Bears a 21-17 edge, but the Panthers chipped back within two. Middlekauff’s kill off of a blocker and Rohan’s touch kill edged the lead back to 23-19. A Rohan spike capped the sweep, 25-20.

The Bears are back in action this afternoon when they host Knox for a chance to win their 50th straight league match.

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