Cedar Ridge Volleyball

Cameron Lloyd: The Bucknell Bison has won 14 consecutive matches, which is tied for the longest winning streak in the country with South Dakota State. The Bison defeated Navy and American University last week. Against the Eagles, the Bison won 26-24, 25-19, 20-25, 21-25, 15-7 at Bender Arena in Washington, D.C. It was just the second time that the Bison defeated the Eagles in the nation’s capital. Lloyd recorded a double-double with 12 kills and 20 digs. On Satruday, Bucknell defeated Navy 3-0 (25-15, 25-9, 25-18) at Brown Fieldhouse in Annapolis, MD. Lloyd had nine kills, three digs and one ace. Bucknell is 6-0 in the Patriot League, 14-1 overall and will face Loyola (MD) and Colgate this weekend.

Cameron Lanier: The Elon Phoenix completed a two-match sweep of Hampton last Friday. The Phoenix won 3-0 (25-12, 25-16, 26-24) at Holland Hall in Virginia. Lanier led Elon with eleven kills. It was Lanier’s eighth match with double-digit kills this season. Elon is 10-7 overall, 4-2 in the Coastal Athletic Association. They will host Campbell for matches at the Schar Center on Saturday and Sunday.

Lottie Scully: The Binghamton Bearcats split two American East Conference matches last week. Maryland-Baltimore County defeated Binghamton 3-0 (25-20, 25-21, 25-21) at Chesapeake Employees Insurance Arena in Baltimore last Friday. Scully, who was named the American East Setter of the Week on September 30, had 15 assists, six digs and one ace. On October 6, Binghamton triumphed over Bryant University 3-1 (33-31, 8-25, 27-25, 25-17) at West Gym in Binghamton. Scully finished with 41 assists, the fourth-most by an American East player this year. Scully’s season-high is 56 assists against Long Island University on September 29. Binghamton will face Temple on Wednesday.

Julie Altieri: The Division III Salisbury Sea Gulls have won seven in a row. Last Saturday, Salisbury swept Scranton (25-18, 25-23, 25-15) at Maggs Activities Center in Salisbury, MD. Altieri had a kill to clinch the match. She finished with 23 assists, six kills and eight digs. Salisbury opened the day with a sweep of Christopher Newport (25-17, 28-26, 25-23). Altieri finished with 31 assists, 12 digs, four aces and two kills. Altieri has nine double-doubles this season. Salisbury is 14-2 overall and will travel to Fredericksburg, VA to face UC Santa Cruz and Mary Washington in a tri-match on Saturday.

Allie Wilkerson: The Averett Cougars swept two matches in Old Dominion Athletic Conference play last weekend. On Friday, Averett defeated Shenandoah University 3-1 at the Stuart James Grant Center in Danville, VA on scores of 23-25, 25-23, 25-20, 25-17. Wilkerson finished with five kills, one digs and one ace. On Saturday, the Cougars won a five-set battle over Eastern Mennonite University 21-25, 20-25, 25-19, 25-23, 15-11. Wilkerson finished with seven kills, one ace and three digs. Averett has won five in a row and are 9-10 overall, 4-2 in the ODAC. The Cougars will face Roanoke College in Salem, Virginia on Wednesday night.

Melissa Benkowitz: Franklin & Marshall defeated Washington College in a sweep at the Cain Athletic Center in Chestertown, MD last Saturday. Benkowitz finished with four digs, one kill and two aces. The Diplomats are 13-3 overall, 2-0 in the Centennial Conference. They will host Dickinson College at the Mayser Center in Lancaster, PA on Wednesday night.

Grace Young: Greensboro College swept North Carolina Wesleyan at Everett Gymnasium in Rocky Mount on Saturday (25-12, 25-20, 25-19. Young had 14 digs. The Pride are 12-5 overall, 5-2 in the USA South Conference. They will host Pfeiffer at Hanes Gymnasium in Greensboro on Wednesday night.

Ella Wimsatt: The Division II Lenoir-Rhyne Bears bounced back from its first loss of the season with a 3-1 win over Lincoln Memorial at Mary Mars Gym in Harrogate, TN last Saturday. Wimsatt played two sets and had one kill with five digs. The Bears are 14-1, 4-1 in the South Atlantic Conference.

Anaya Carter: UNC Pembroke lost a five-set match to Mount Olive on October 4 (14-25, 25-17, 25-14, 20-25, 15-13). Carter played one set and had one kill with one dig for Pembroke. The Braves will travel to Murfressboro, NC to face Chowan on Wednesday night. Pembroke is 5-9 overall, 2-2 in Conference Carolinas.

The Cedar Ridge volleyball team is one win away from tying for the Central Conference regular season championship. On Wednesday night, the Red Wolves swept Western Alamance on Wednesday night, which knocked the Warriors out of a tie for first in the Central Conference. Cedar Ridge is now tied with Orange for first place in the league. The Red Wolves will travel to Williams on Tuesday night for its final conference game of the regular season. Red Wolf libero Sydnee Tapper leads the team with 326 digs in her first season as a starter. She also has 24 aces. Junior Ellamarie Perel is third on the team with 109 kills. On September 19 in a dramatic 3-2 win over Person, Perel played on the back row and had a career-high 13 digs. Sophomore Calla Lundberg has 35 kills this season. Lundberg had five kills against Person. In decisive wins, Cedar Ridge has developed unique celebrations on the bench. Tapper, Lunberg and Perel showed off some of them during this video. Cedar Ridge will face Granville Central in its final regular season home game on Monday night. Following the contest against Williams, the Red Wolves will travel to Roxboro Community School on Wednesday night to end the regular season. The Central Conference Tournament will start on October 14.

Cedar Ridge volleyball’s Ellamarie Perel, Sydnee Tapper & Calla Lundberg talk various celebrations

The Cedar Ridge volleyball team is one win away from tying for the Central Conference regular season championship. On Wednesday night, the Red Wolves swept Western Alamance on Wednesday night, which knocked the Warriors out of a tie for first in the Central Conference.

This week’s Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week is junior volleyball setter Mia Marty. Very early in her varsity career, Mia learned about big matches for the Red Wolves. After playing the entire junior varsity schedule in 2022, Marty stepped in for an injured Julie Altieri as a freshman and played three matches in the state playoffs against Walter Williams, Orange and Richlands. In her second varsity match, Marty had 19 assists as the Red Wolves defeated the Panthers in four sets. This season, Marty leads Cedar Ridge with 324 assists through the first 15 matches. She also has 166 digs, third on the team. Last year, Marty learned under senior setter Rachel Alverson in how to direct the offense as the Red Wolves won the Central Conference Tournament over Orange. She has added 74 kills as the Red Wolves are currently tied with Orange for first place in the loss column of the Central with a 9-2 conference record. Cedar Marty has also played soccer at Cedar Ridge. Her brother, Evan Marty, played soccer and basketball at Cedar Ridge and wasn’t shy about challenging his sister to one-versus-one matches at home when they were growing up. Cedar Ridge will play its final regular season home game against Granville Central on Monday, then travel to Walter Williams on Tuesday. If the Red Wolves win over the Bulldogs, they will clinch a share of the regular season championship.

Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week: Mia Marty

This week’s Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week is junior volleyball setter Mia Marty. Very early in her varsity career, Mia learned about big matches for the Red Wolves. After playing the entire junior varsity schedule in 2022, Marty stepped in for an injured Julie Altieri as a freshman and played three matches in the state playoffs against Walter Williams, Orange and Richlands.

The Cedar Ridge volleyball seniors were honored on September 16 in a victory over Roxboro Community School. Charlotte Lowry, Ellie Miller, Alleah Fredrick and Leah Pritchard took part in a ceremony before the opening serve against the Bulldogs. Lowry is a starting middle blocker who is also an All-Central Conference player in softball. She is in her second year playing volleyball. This season, she has 17 blocks and 19 kills. Ellie Miller is one of the best defensive players on the team. She has 107 digs over 54 sets this season. Miller has also registered 20 aces. Fredrick is in her first year on the varsity. She has eight kills over 22 sets and played regularly in the Red Wolves win at Orange earlier this month. Pritchard had three aces to conclude the Orange win. Cedar Ridge is fighting for its fourth conference championship in five years. Currently, they are tied for first place with Orange and Western Alamance with four conference games remaining. The Red Wolves will continue the stretch run with a road trip to Eastern Alamance on Tuesday. On Wednesday, Cedar Ridge will host Western Alamance in a crucial matchup in the conference standings. Last year, the Red Wolves won the Central Conference Tournament with a win at Orange.

Cedar Ridge volleyball seniors Lowry, Miller, Fredrick & Pritchard discuss Senior Night

The Cedar Ridge volleyball seniors were honored on September 16 in a victory over Roxboro Community School. Charlotte Lowry, Ellie Miller, Alleah Fredrick and Leah Pritchard took part in a ceremony before the opening serve against the Bulldogs. Lowry is a starting middle blocker who is also an All-Central Conference player in softball.

Photo by Lehigh Athletics

Cameron Lloyd: The Bucknell Bison swept its opening two opponents to begin the Patriot League season over the weekend. The Bison opened with a sweep of Holy Cross at Davis Gymnasium in Lewisburg, PA. Lloyd led the Bison with ten kills. She also had four digs and one ace. On Saturday, the Bison defeated Army 3-1. Lloyd finished with nine kills, two aces, and six digs. It was Bucknell’s first home victory against Army since 2015. Bucknell improves to 10-1 overall and will host Lafayette and Lehigh next weekend at Davis Gymnasium.

Lottie Scully: The Binghamton volleyball team split its two matches in the Rose Hill Classic in the Bronx, NY. The Bearcats opened with a sweep of Fordham on Friday. Scully finished with 30 assists, her seventh straight match with 20 or more assists. She also finished with three kills, five digs and one ace. West Virginia defeated Binghamton 3-2 on Saturday. Scully finished with 37 assists, eight digs and two kills. Binghamton is 8-5 and will face Le Moyne in Syracuse, NY on Tuesday.

Cameron Lanier: The College of Charleston swept a doubleheader from Elon to open Coastal Athletic Association play over the weekend. On Saturday, the Cougars won 3-1 at the Schar Center. Lanier, an outside hitter for Elon, led the Phoenix with 14 kills. She also had five digs and one ace. The Cougars also had a four-set victory on Sunday. Lanier finished with 12 kills, which was tied for a team-high, along with six digs. Elon is 6-7 overall, 0-2 in the CAA and will travel to UNC Wilmington next weekend.

Ella Wimsatt: The Division II Lenoir-Rhyne Bears are 12-0 after sweeping weekend matches at Shuford Arena in Hickory, one of which featured Wimsatt going against a former Cedar Ridge Red Wolf. On Saturday, the Bears defeated UNC Pembroke 3-2, winning the fifth set 15-7. Wimsatt played in four sets and had seven digs. Earlier on Saturday, the Bears swept Mars Hill. Wimsatt finished with five digs and an ace. The Bears will open South Atlantic Conference play against Anderson on Tuesday.

Julie Altieri: Division III Salisbury swept all three of its weekend matches to improve to 11-2. On Friday, the Sea Gulls defeated Mary Washington 3-0 at the Maggs Physical Activities Center in Salisbury, MD. Altieri finished with 37 assists and nine digs. She also had two kills, three aces. Only a sophomore, Altieri has already surpassed 1,000 career assists at Salisbury. On Saturday, the Gulls defeated St. Mary’s of Maryland 3-1. Altieri racked up 43 assists with 14 digs, four kills and two aces. In the last round of the tri-match, Salisbury swept Hollins 3-0 at the O’Brien Athletics & Recreation Center Arena in St. Mary’s City, MD. Altieri finished with 28 assists. The Sea Gulls will face Stockton and Gettysburg in Gettysburg, PA on Saturday.

Melissa Benkowitz: Franklin & Marshall faced the #1 ranked team in Division III in Juniata at Huntingdon, PA on Saturday. Juniata swept the Diplomats. Benkowitz finished with two kills and six digs. Later on Saturday, Franklin & Marshall defeated Muskingum 3-0. That improved the Diplomats record to 11-2. Benkowitz finished with two aces, one assist and two digs. Franklin & Marshall will face Lancaster Bible on Tuesday.

Allie Wilkerson: Division III Averett University dropped its opening matches in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference at the Stuart Grant James Center in Danville, VA. On Friday, Bridgewater defeated Averett 3-0 on scores of 26-24, 25-12 and 25-16. Wilkerson played two sets and finished with one dig. On Saturday, #25 Washington and Lee University swept the Cougars on scores of 25-16, 25-16 and 25-19. Wilkerson finished with four kills and two digs. Later on Saturday, Berea College knocked off the Cougars 3-1 on scores of 25-18, 25-22, 21-25 and 25-22. Wilkerson finished with one dig. Averett is 4-10 overall, 1-2 in the ODAC. They will face Ferrum College on Wednesday.

Addie Reid: Reid is on the roster at North Carolina Central University. The Eagles defeated the Charlotte 49ers on Saturday to improve to 2-9. Reid was a middle blocker for Cedar Ridge’s 2021 3A State Championship team.