SCHENECTADY, N.Y. – The Union College women's volleyball team earned a pair of victories on day two of the Union/Russell Sage Crosstown Challenge on Saturday afternoon at Viniar Athletic Center. Union held off Plattsburgh State University by a 3-2 score to start the day, then swept Nichols College 3-0 to end the afternoon.
 
First-year Shannon McGrath led Union with 21 kills on the day, followed closely by junior Caroline Fraser with 19 and junior Keara Page with 18. Fellow junior Brooke Fleming paced the squad with 36 assists in eight sets, while first-year Georgia Pool led the team defensively with 35 digs.
 
Union 3, Plattsburgh 2 (25-11, 25-22, 17-25, 21-25, 15-11)
 
Union nearly let a two-set lead slip away in the first match of the day, but the team rebounded from two losses to come back and win the fifth and decisive frame for the victory.
 
Page led all players with 15 kills, and Fraser had an excellent outing with 10 kills on .429 hitting (10-1-21). The tandem of Fleming (22 assists) and senior Haley Kresch (19 assists) did well to distribute the ball, as Union finished the match with 53 kills as a team.
 
The opening set was decided midway through the frame when the home team scored 14 straight points on Pool's serve, turning a 7-6 lead into a 21-6 advantage. The Dutchwomen made it a two-set lead with a late rally in the second stanza, seven of the final eight points to turn a 21-18 deficit into a 25-22 win.
 
Plattsburgh did not go away, however, winning the third and fourth set comfortably to send the match to a fifth frame. Union was down by three points on four separate occasions in the final stanza, but stormed back with a closing 8-1 run to earn the victory.
 
Union 3, Nichols 0 (25-20, 25-19, 25-20)
 
Union was able to close the door in three sets in the final match of the day against Nichols. Fraser led a balanced offensive effort with nine kills, as six different Union players had at least three put downs in the win.
 
After winning a back-and-forth first set, Union took control of the second set with a 12-2 run midway through the frame to take a 19-12 lead and, eventually, a two-set advantage. The third set was evenly played and was knotted at 15 before Union made one final surge, outscoring the Bison 10-4 the rest of the way to secure the sweep.
 
Union will start Liberty League play with a pair of home matches this weekend, beginning with a Friday night match against St. Lawrence University starting at 7 p.m. at Viniar Athletic Center.