Saturday, September 28
Ithaca, N.Y.
2:00 P.M.
Columbia University
at
Cornell
Photo by: Chris Teehan
Lions Open Ivy League Play With Visit To Cornell
9/27/2019 11:33:00 AM | Volleyball
Columbia Volleyball will open up its Ivy League schedule with a Saturday, Sept. 28 visit to Cornell.
ITHACA, N.Y. – Riding a four-match winning streak, that includes back-to-back five set wins, Columbia Volleyball (7-2) will finally head into Ivy League play with a Saturday, Sept. 28, matchup at Cornell (7-2), with first serve scheduled for 2 p.m. and the match is set to be broadcast on ESPN+ live from Newman Hall.
HOW TO WATCH/FOLLOW
at Cornell – Live Stats | Watch (ESPN+) | Twitter (@CUVB)
REVIEWING THE PREVIOUS WEEKEND: Columbia opened up home for the first time, taking down Fordham in four sets on Sept. 19 to take the home opener. The Lions then had themselves back-to-back nights that saw them play through five sets, coming away with the win in both matches, and it started on Sept. 20 in a five-set battle against San Jose State that saw the Lions take the first two, drop the next two and come away with the fifth set win.
Fresh off the five-set battle, the Lions quickly found themselves in a two-set hole at LIU on Sept. 21, with fatigue playing a factor thanks to the previous night's five-set battle against San Jose State. But Columbia found it within themselves to fight back, and a 25-9 third-set victory sent the Lions on a roll that saw them come storming back to take the next two sets and the match to wrap up three straight nights with three straight victories and they extended their winning streak to four matches entering Ivy League play.
CHICHI ADDS TO THE CASE: Senior Chichi Ikwuazom has been filling up her trophy case over the first month of the season, and over the past week her awards total again grew as the Ivy League, for the third straight week, named Ikwuazom the Player of the Week. On top of the Ivy League nod, Ikwuazom's performance also got national attention as well, with Ikwuazom being named the Sports Imports/AVCA National Player of the Week following her three-match performance where she racked up 81 total kills, averaged 5.79 kills per set and hit .470.
ROBICHAUD'S ROOKIE NOD: First-year Kiara Robichaud has been a force for Columbia, and her solid play has helped balance out the Lion attack and this past week her three-match run that saw her rack up 33 total kills, 2.36 kills per set and a serving average of .925 on 40 total attempts got her some Ivy League attention. Joining Ikwuazom on the Ivy League award list, Robichaud was named the Ivy League Rookie of the Week and she now has that accolade and a visit on the Ivy League Honor Roll under her belt over the first month of her collegiate career.
CHENG TRIPLES UP: In Columbia's home opener against Fordham, junior Audrey Cheng had herself a night, recording 47 assists, 13 kills and 12 digs on her way to her first career double-double and the first by a Lion since Paula Lobeck recorded a triple-double on Sept. 17, 2002. Historically it was the ninth triple-double in program history and Cheng becomes the fourth Lion to ever record a triple-double. Nationally, Cheng is one of 21 student-athletes to have recorded at least one triple-double so far this season.
NATIONAL CHICHI: Entering the weekend, Ikwuazom is ranked as one of the best in the nation on the offensive side, as she is second in kills per set (5.89), third in points per set (6.42) fourth in hitting percentage (.476), ninth in total kills (212) and 14th in total points (231.0).
WHAT THE BIG RED BRING: Much like Columbia, this weekend's match will act also act as the Ivy League opener for Cornell as they come into the Saturday afternoon matchup on a five-match winning streak. During that stretch, the Big Red took down, Utah State, San Francisco, Canisius, Buffalo and Sant Francis (Pa.), with all of those matches coming away from home.
All-time, Cornell leads the series 41-12, and the Big Red have taken the previous two matchups against Columbia. A win by the Lions would be their first in Ithaca, New York since a 3-1 win in 2015 and Cornell took last year's final matchup, 3-2, in a match that was played in Ithaca.
Were Cornell is strong is on the defensive side of the net, with Jada Stackhouse's 39.0 blocks leading the way for the Big Red. Stackhouse's block totals are also tops in the Ivy League and they rank her 39th in the nation. The strong presence at the net has helped Cornell hold teams to a hitting percentage of .131 which ranks them sixth in the nation in opponent hitting percentage.
Offensive, Jillienne Bennett is leading the way in total kills, with 60, and Stackhouse sits right behind her teammate with 59 total kills. Jenna Phelps, who is tied for third on the team in total kills with 53, is 15th in the country in hitting percentage (.434) and Stackhouse, who is hitting at .412 percent, ranks 26th in the country.
FOLLOWING THE LIONS: Stay up to date on all things Columbia Volleyball by following the Lions on Twitter (@CUVB), Instagram (@columbiawvb) and on Facebook (@ColumbiaAthletics).
HOW TO WATCH/FOLLOW
at Cornell – Live Stats | Watch (ESPN+) | Twitter (@CUVB)
REVIEWING THE PREVIOUS WEEKEND: Columbia opened up home for the first time, taking down Fordham in four sets on Sept. 19 to take the home opener. The Lions then had themselves back-to-back nights that saw them play through five sets, coming away with the win in both matches, and it started on Sept. 20 in a five-set battle against San Jose State that saw the Lions take the first two, drop the next two and come away with the fifth set win.
Fresh off the five-set battle, the Lions quickly found themselves in a two-set hole at LIU on Sept. 21, with fatigue playing a factor thanks to the previous night's five-set battle against San Jose State. But Columbia found it within themselves to fight back, and a 25-9 third-set victory sent the Lions on a roll that saw them come storming back to take the next two sets and the match to wrap up three straight nights with three straight victories and they extended their winning streak to four matches entering Ivy League play.
CHICHI ADDS TO THE CASE: Senior Chichi Ikwuazom has been filling up her trophy case over the first month of the season, and over the past week her awards total again grew as the Ivy League, for the third straight week, named Ikwuazom the Player of the Week. On top of the Ivy League nod, Ikwuazom's performance also got national attention as well, with Ikwuazom being named the Sports Imports/AVCA National Player of the Week following her three-match performance where she racked up 81 total kills, averaged 5.79 kills per set and hit .470.
ROBICHAUD'S ROOKIE NOD: First-year Kiara Robichaud has been a force for Columbia, and her solid play has helped balance out the Lion attack and this past week her three-match run that saw her rack up 33 total kills, 2.36 kills per set and a serving average of .925 on 40 total attempts got her some Ivy League attention. Joining Ikwuazom on the Ivy League award list, Robichaud was named the Ivy League Rookie of the Week and she now has that accolade and a visit on the Ivy League Honor Roll under her belt over the first month of her collegiate career.
CHENG TRIPLES UP: In Columbia's home opener against Fordham, junior Audrey Cheng had herself a night, recording 47 assists, 13 kills and 12 digs on her way to her first career double-double and the first by a Lion since Paula Lobeck recorded a triple-double on Sept. 17, 2002. Historically it was the ninth triple-double in program history and Cheng becomes the fourth Lion to ever record a triple-double. Nationally, Cheng is one of 21 student-athletes to have recorded at least one triple-double so far this season.
NATIONAL CHICHI: Entering the weekend, Ikwuazom is ranked as one of the best in the nation on the offensive side, as she is second in kills per set (5.89), third in points per set (6.42) fourth in hitting percentage (.476), ninth in total kills (212) and 14th in total points (231.0).
WHAT THE BIG RED BRING: Much like Columbia, this weekend's match will act also act as the Ivy League opener for Cornell as they come into the Saturday afternoon matchup on a five-match winning streak. During that stretch, the Big Red took down, Utah State, San Francisco, Canisius, Buffalo and Sant Francis (Pa.), with all of those matches coming away from home.
All-time, Cornell leads the series 41-12, and the Big Red have taken the previous two matchups against Columbia. A win by the Lions would be their first in Ithaca, New York since a 3-1 win in 2015 and Cornell took last year's final matchup, 3-2, in a match that was played in Ithaca.
Were Cornell is strong is on the defensive side of the net, with Jada Stackhouse's 39.0 blocks leading the way for the Big Red. Stackhouse's block totals are also tops in the Ivy League and they rank her 39th in the nation. The strong presence at the net has helped Cornell hold teams to a hitting percentage of .131 which ranks them sixth in the nation in opponent hitting percentage.
Offensive, Jillienne Bennett is leading the way in total kills, with 60, and Stackhouse sits right behind her teammate with 59 total kills. Jenna Phelps, who is tied for third on the team in total kills with 53, is 15th in the country in hitting percentage (.434) and Stackhouse, who is hitting at .412 percent, ranks 26th in the country.
FOLLOWING THE LIONS: Stay up to date on all things Columbia Volleyball by following the Lions on Twitter (@CUVB), Instagram (@columbiawvb) and on Facebook (@ColumbiaAthletics).
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