LOUDONVILLE, NY – The Rider University volleyball team began completed a weekend sweep in upstate New York, defeating Siena Saturday afternoon, 25-17, 25-15, 22-25, 25-15. The Broncs improve to 4-8 on the season and 2-0 in conference play, while the Saints fall to 5-9 overall and 1-1 in league matches.
 
Down 5-4 early in the first, the Broncs went on a quick 6-1 run, including an ace from Makenna Mason (Hilton Head Island, SC/Hilton Head) to take the lead. Leading 18-15, later in the set, Rider went on a 5-0 run, getting a pair of combo blocks by Molly Rohde (Hortonville, WI/Hortonville) and Kiannisha Santiago (San Juan, PR/Hudson Catholic (NJ)) along with a pair of kills by Erynn Gotsch (DeLand, FL/DeLand) to build the lead, going on to take the set.
 
Set two was all Rider. The Broncs jumped out to an 11-2 lead thanks to large contributions from the service line. Rohde delivered a pair of aces and Santiago added another, while the Saints would not get closer than seven points for the remainder of the set.
 
The third set saw no separation early, with the ninth tie of the set coming at 10-10. Rider appeared to be positioned to pull away with a Santiago getting a kill, then a block to spur a 4-1 run, but Siena recovered to even the set once again at 16-16. Down 18-17, Siena went on a 5-0 run before holding on to claim the set.
 
Rider bounced back in the fourth, jumping out to a 6-2 lead. Up 9-6 later in the set, Rohde had two kills and a block during a 4-0 run, then another 4-0 run later in the set put the Broncs up 18-9 as the Broncs went on to cruise to the fourth-set win.
 
QUOTES & NOTES
"Good match after a quick turnaround, getting to the hotel around midnight. Not the easiest of circumstances, but the players handled it well. Huge congrats to Keegan, who picked up her 1,000^th dig today! Proud and happy for her to hit the achievement."
 
"Our middles again did a great job of sticking with the plan and scoring at a really good percentage, which opened things up for Kianny, Rylah, and Erynn. Our ability to win serve/pass really fuels our block and defense. We did a great job in that phase, except set three where we had an energy dip. Makenna again did great, pacing the offense at 12 assists/set. Overall a great way to start MAAC play on the road and come away with two wins." – Head Coach Jeff Rotondo
 
- Rider cuts Siena's lead in the all-time series to 30-21.
- Santiago led all players in the match with 15 kills, reaching double figures for the sixth time this season and 39^th time in her career.
- Gotsch reached double figures in kills for the second-straight match, securing a career-high 14 kills while .458.
- Carley McAleavey (Smithtown, NY/Smithtown West) had 13 kills on .524 hitting, reaching double figures for the fourth time this season and 13^th time in her career
- Mason had 49 assists for her 11^th match this season and 57^th match in her career with double digits.
- Keegan O'Connor (Weatherford, TX/Weatherford) led all players in the match with 14 digs to reach double figures for the 10^th time this season and 60^th time in her career. Her final dig in the match was the 1,000^th of her career, making her the 16^th Bronc to reach the milestone.

BRONCS BY THE NUMBERS
- The Broncs hit .382 in the match, while the Saints hit .200 as a team.
- Rider had 57 kills to 45 for Siena.
- The Broncs had 47 digs, while Siena finished with 45.
- Rider held an 11-7 edge in aces.

UP NEXT
The Broncs are back in action Tuesday for the start of a five-match homestand beginning with Saint Peter's. First serve is scheduled for 6 p.m.