Albany, N.Y. – Led by 11 kills from junior Angelia Cirigliano (Newburgh, N.Y.) and a career-high 41 assists from junior Kristen Maddock (Medford, N.Y.), the Mount Saint Mary College Women's Volleyball team topped Sage by scores of 25-17, 25-18, 18-25, 25-22 to advance to the Skyline Conference Championship match for the fifth time in the last six seasons. The Knights will travel to top-seeded Mount Saint Vincent on Saturday in search of its second conference tournament title.
 
Mount Saint Mary got off to a fast start on Thursday, using a five point run to pull in front 19-11 in the opening set. Megan Williams (Glenmont, N.Y.) put away two kills in the run, with Cirigliano and Kaitlin O'Brien (Staten Island, N.Y.) adding winners for the Knights.
 
After Sage pulled to within 19-14, Mount Saint Mary scored six of the final nine points of the set to take a one set lead in the semifinal match. Cirigliano put away four kills down the stretch for the Knights and finished the opening frame with five kills and a .412 attach percentage.
 
The Knights took a two set advantage on Thursday after putting away 12 kills in the second frame, including four from senior Kayla Kurka (Islip, N.Y.). Junior Elizabeth Lavin (Hicksville, N.Y.) added three winners in the stanza for the Knights.
 
Leading the second set 20-17, Mount Saint Mary closed the set on a 5-1 run to move in front by two sets. Senior Maribeth Powers (Yorktown, N.Y.), Kurka and Maddock recorded kills over the run to push the Knights in front by two frames.
 
After stumbling in the third set and falling behind 14-9 in the fourth stanza, the Mount rallied to earn the 3-1 victory. A Powers kill tied the fourth set at 18-18 for the Knights and a three point spurt gave the Mount a 21-19 advantage. Kurka and Rachel Sabatini (Hopewell Junction, N.Y.) put away winners for Mount Saint Mary to push the Knights in front.
 
Sage would knot the score at 21-21, before Mount Saint Mary closed with four of the final five points of the night. Jennifer Hanley (Sayville, N.Y.) and Williams contributed kills before the match ended on a pair of Sage miscues.
 
Cirigliano led all players on the night with her 11 kills, hitting .296 in the match and adding three digs. Kurka and Williams each finished with nine kills for Mount Saint Mary, with Kurka rounding out the night with five total blocks and six digs. Williams finished off the night with four blocks for the Knights.
 
Lavin chipped in with seven kills and three blocks for Mount Saint Mary, with Hanley contributing six kills and five blocks.
 
Maddock reached the 40 assist plateau for the first time in her career on Thursday and rounded out a double-double with 13 digs and three service aces. O'Brien added a pair of aces and 13 digs, while Jennifer Gries (Hicksville, N.Y.) led the team with 26 digs.
 
Sage was paced by 10 kills from Michayla Berard, with Rachel Liebig handing out 32 assists and nine digs. Siena Wilder led the team with three aces and led all players on the night with 31 digs.
 
Overall, Mount Saint Mary finished the night with a 49-36 advantage in kills and hit .142 as a team as opposed to .038 for Sage. The Knights won the service game with a 10-8 edge in service aces and dominated the net with a 10-5 advantage in total team blocks.
 
Thursday's win brings Mount Saint Mary to within a match of the .500 mark on the season at 17-18 overall. The Knights and Dolphins will square off at the Peter Jay Sharp Center in Riverdale, N.Y. at 5:00 p.m.

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