Lions Head Out On Dartmouth/Harvard Swing

Friday, October 15

Hanover, N.H.

7:00 p.m.

Columbia University

Dartmouth

Photo by: Columbia University Athletics/Mike McLaughlin

10/14/2021 1:40:00 PM | Volleyball

Watch (DART)Watch (HARV)

Columbia Volleyball hits the road for a visit to Dartmouth (Oct. 15) and Harvard (Oct. 16).

HANOVER, N.H. — After a weekend at home, Columbia Volleyball (4-10, 1-4 IVY) heads back on the road for a New England Ivy League swing, starting at Dartmouth (8-6, 0-5 IVY) on Oct. 15 at 7 p.m., before heading to Cambridge, Massachusetts to visit Harvard (6-8, 3-2 IVY) on Oct. 16 at 5 p.m.

HOW TO WATCH/FOLLOW
at Dartmouth – Live Stats | Watch (ESPN+) | Social Media (@culionsvb)
at Harvard – Live Stats | Watch (ESPN+) | Social Media (@culionsvb)

WEEKEND RESULTS: The past weekend Columbia hosted both Penn (Oct. 8) and Princeton (Oct. 9), unfortunately dropping both matches. The Lions fell to the Quakers, 3-1, before dropping their match to Princeton in straight sets.

Over the weekend, Noelle Foster smashed home a career-high 25 kills against Penn, before wrapping up with 11 kills against Princeton for a total of 36 kills on .363 hitting. Soah Franklin did a good job of protecting the net, recording six total blocks over the two matches and Emily Teehan added 24 kills over the two matches.

FOSTERING BIG NUMBERS: Being fed on the outside all year, Foster has begun to really make her presence known as she has collected 199 kills while hitting a solid .249. In back-to-back matches, against Brown (24 kills) and Penn (25 kills), Foster set career highs on the attack.

Since Ivy League play has begun, Foster has really shown up, collecting 79 kills on .250 hitting. She has also added 17 digs and 12 total blocks during Columbia's Ivy League action.

LIONS IN THE IVY LEAGUE: The strong starts by Foster and Cadence Gronski have placed them at or near the top in several categories. Foster's offensive numbers have been leading the Lions and, in the league, she sits second in kills per set (3.98) and total kills (199) and she sits first in the league in points per set (4.34).

Gronski's been a force setting the Columbia offense, as she sits second in the league in total assists (453) and second in assists per set (10.53). Franklin sits ninth in blocks per set (0.87) while Vanessa Pan (3.88) sits sixth in digs per set. Isa Lamus has also cracked the Ivy League top 10, hitting .297 so far this season which places her ninth in the league, while Teehan's 3.24 kills per set is good enough to place her seventh in the league.

GRONSKI'S TABLE MANNERS: Gronski continues to be a strong presence setting the Lions offense, as her 453 total assists still places her second in the Ivy League. She also sits second in the league in assists per set (10.53) and that number is good enough to place her 31st in the nation.

DARTMOUTH MATCHUP: This will be the 53rd meeting between Dartmouth and Columbia, with the Big Green holding a slight 27-25 advantage. The last four matches have gone back and forth between the two sides, with Dartmouth taking the last meeting (Nov. 15, 2019) but the Lions having taken the first meeting of 2019 to split that and the 2018 meetings as well.

Dartmouth comes in on a five-match losing streak having lost all of their Ivy League matches. Their previous weekend mirrored Columbia's with the Big Green losing in straight sets at Brown (Oct. 8) before falling in four sets at Yale (Oct. 9).

Individually, the Big Green are led by Allie Blain's 3.58 kills per set, which place her fourth in the league. Her 10.75 attacks per set place her second in the league, while Emma Engstrom's 4.88 digs per set place her first in the league and 32nd in the nation. Engstrom's 278 total digs ranks her first in the league.

On the national stage, the Big Green have been digging the ball with the best in the country, sitting 16th in the nation with 17.25 digs per set. Along with the digs per set, Dartmouth leads the league in team attacks per set (37.77), total digs (983) and total attacks (2,153).

HARVARD MATCHUP: Facing off for the 60th time, Columbia and Harvard get together with the Crimson holding a 39-20 advantage all-time. The Lions have taken four out of the last five meetings, including both meetings during 2019. That final 2019 meeting was a five-set comeback win in Cambridge that finished off the 2019 season on high note for the Lions.

Over their last three matches, Harvard has only gotten one win, taking down Yale in five sets on Oct. 8. Their last match was against Brown, where they fell in four sets on Oct. 9 in Providence, Rhode Island and the Crimson will begin the weekend at Cornell on Oct. 15.

Ashley Wang has been strong for the Crimson, serving with some of the best in the country recording 0.50 aces pers set, which places her second in the league and 22nd in the nation and her 22 total service aces puts her first in the league. Wang is also one of 21 student athletes in the country to have recorded at least one triple double during the season.

As a team, Harvard leads the league in total assists (686), total kills (758), total aces (99) and total blocks (130).

VENUE POLICIES: Volleyball spectator attendance will be restricted to a limited pass list only due to University COVID protocols and in accordance with NYC Executive Order 225.

If you are Columbia fan, fully vaccinated and would like to attend a volleyball game this fall, please contact Assistant Volleyball Coach Julia Anderson at ja3445@columbia.edu to get on the Volleyball guest list. You must be on the guest list to be able to attend a volleyball game at Levien Gymnasium before the game you would like to attend. There is limited availability for each home contest.

FOLLOWING THE LIONS: Stay up to date on all things Columbia Volleyball by following the Lions on Twitter (@CULionsVB), Instagram (@culionsvb) and on Facebook (@ColumbiaAthletics).