The Lady Raiders Volleyball team came from behind to beat the Herkimer Generals in their home opener on Wednesday night. FM won the match in 5 sets; 25-27, 25-23, 23-25, 26-24 and 15-7.
Photo: Bri Egan (1), Gabrielle Smith (7) and Julie Hampton (2) celebrate a crucial point.
Both teams were evenly matched and Herkimer jumped out to a 16-18 lead in the first set. Bri Eagan put FM in the lead 22-21, but the Generals strung together points down the stretch to win 27-25.
The Raiders bounced back in the second set as Megan Ryder put FM in the lead 16-12. Herkimer crept their way back to take the lead 19-20, but FM settled in for the 25-23 victory. Both teams went point for point in the third set, but Herkimer took advantage of some FM miscues for a 25-23 victory.
In the fourth set FM found themselves in a hole, but were able to make a comeback. Aspen Darling's ace closed the Herkimer lead to 18-15 and Ryder's ace tied the set at 19. The Generals were a point away from the victory, but FM scored four straight points to win 26-24 and force game five. FM dominated the final set 15-7 and secured the 3-2 victory.
Bri Eagan led the Raiders with 26 digs and 30 kills. Megan Ryder finished with 20 kills and Gabrielle Smith had 61 assists. Brianna Port led with 9 blocks.
The Lady Raiders moved to 5-4 on the season and 2-0 in conference play. FM will travel to Mohawk Valley CC on Saturday, September 16th for POD play. The Raiders will play Broome, Tompkins Cortland and Corning.