MORAGA, Calif. – The Gaels battled it out with the visiting Big Red on Friday night and completed the comeback to win in five sets after trailing 2-1.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• SET ONE | Saint Mary's started from behind on Friday as the Big Red took an early 6-1 lead to begin the first set. The Gaels soon found their stride and went on a 7-1 run to take their first lead of the night and forced Cornell to take a timeout. Following the break, SMC kept their momentum and took a five point lead before the Big Red were able to score again. Saint Mary's remained in control for the rest of the set and went on to win 25-17. Freshman Elena Baka shined in her first game at McKeon Pavilion and recorded seven kills in the first set, 17 total on the night for a new career-high.

• SET TWO | SMC and Cornell traded points through the beginning of the second set until the Big Red took a 11-6 lead. However, it was short-lived and the Gaels tied it back up at 14-14 with a 5-1 run. The two teams went point-for-point for the remainder of the set but the Big Red eventually took the 25-22 win to even the match 1-1.

• SET THREE | As the third set began, Saint Mary's and Cornell went back to trading points and were tied at numerous different moments during the set. The Big Red then pulled out to a 17-14 lead as the Gaels took their first timeout of the night. Following the break, Cornell continued to increase their lead to 23-17. The Gaels then forced Cornell to attempt set point three different times and brought the score to 22-24 before the Big Red was able to score the last point and win set three 25-22. Sophomore Breyan Ashley and Baka showed their dominance and had recorded 22 collective kills by the end of the set.

• SET FOUR | Cornell took an early 10-5 lead in the fourth set that they soon extended to 15-7. Saint Mary's did not give up however and then went on a 5-0 run to bring the set back within three points, forcing the Big Red to take a timeout. The Gaels then tied the set 19-19 following a service ace from freshman Kelsey Knudsen, her third of the night. SMC and Cornell went point-for-point in the final moments of the set, bringing the score to 24-24 at one point, but Saint Mary's eventually sealed the deal on an ace from sophomore Abigail Matoso and SMC took set four 26-24.

• SET FIVE | The Gaels held a consistent one-to-two-point lead through the beginning of the final set before breaking out a 7-3 lead and forcing Cornell to take a timeout. The Big Red brought it within one point after the break, but Saint Mary's continued to shut down Cornell's opportunities and pulled out to an 11-7 lead. SMC went on to win the set 15-9 and take the match three sets to two.

QUOTABLES

"When we subbed in Alosina and Selbie, they brought a particular kind of energy that made a huge difference," said head coach Rob Browning. "Once Cornell started to feel the pressure, we took advantage of it and got back to our game. Everyone really elevated their play out their tonight and that helped us get back to where we started."

"It definitely helped us that it was our first home game," said Baka. "It made us start with lots of passion and energy. I thought we played really well in the end and we did a good job of helping each other make fixes and adjustments through the match."

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• 15: Total number of aces for the Gaels, compared to Cornell's six
• 32: Combined number of kills from Baka and Ashley against the Big Red
• 15: Blocks for Saint Mary's, with five total blocks from Jennifer "Boo" Laird and Alex O'Sullivan
• 3: Three Gaels (Ashley, Knudsen, Alexsa "Crash" Parker) recorded three aces each

UP NEXT

The Gaels will hit the court again tomorrow to face off against Utah State in their final game of the Bay Area Invitational; first serve will be at 7:00 p.m.

#GaelsRise – For ticket information to all home volleyball matches, call the SMC Ticket Office today at 925-631-4689 or click the ticket link here to purchase your seats now.