Senior Liana Sarkissian passes 500 career kills as Dayton Volleyball goes 2-1 at the Flyer Invitational.

(Photo via Carson Caprella)

Carson Caprella | Chief Photographer

DAYTON, Ohio – Dayton Volleyball hosted the Flyer Invitational at Frericks Center this weekend, with UC Santa Barbara, Illinois State, and city rival Wright State attending. The Flyers finished the invitational 2-1, dropping their game to Wright State and ending their out-of-conference play 5-6.

The Flyers entered Frericks Center this weekend looking to end their out-of-conference play in the win column. Dayton had fallen to a record of 3-5 after a 3-game losing streak during the Minnesota Diet Coke Classic at the University of Minnesota. At Minnesota, they were swept by South Dakota State and No. 13 Minnesota, and lost a close match to Receiving Votes USF 2-3. The Flyer Invitational was their chance to net some wins to build momentum for their in-conference play.

The first match against RV UCSB started rough for the Flyers, as they dropped their first set 17-25. After that first set, however, the Flyers bounced back to take the second and third sets 25-19 and 25-18, not giving up the lead once between both sets. The fourth set was a tight battle between the Flyers and the Gauchos, with the lead changing five times between the teams during the set. In the end, the Flyers persisted and took the fourth set 25-23, officially snapping their losing streak. 

The second match of the Invitational for the Flyers saw them sweep the Illinois State Redbirds (25-15, 25-19, 25-14). Senior Liana Sarkissian, an outside hitter for the Flyers, crossed a major milestone by surpassing 500 career kills, recording five during the match. Kamryn Hunt led the Flyers in kills with nine, and Karissa Kaminski recorded four service aces during the match, two of those being the last two scores of the match.

The Flyers concluded the weekend with an in-city rivalry match against the Wright State Raiders. Though they kept each set close, they were ultimately swept by the Raiders (23-25, 24-26, 22-25), losing by a combined seven points.

The Flyers finished their out-of-conference play with a record of 5-6. The team will start in-conference play at Davidson this Friday, and will return home to face Fordham on October 3rd.

Photos via Carson Caprella, Flyer News