United States Merchant Marine Academy

KINGS POINT, N.Y. (Sept. 29, 2026) – The U.S. Merchant Marine Academy women's volleyball team defeated Skyline Conference rival Farmingdale State for the first time since 2022 on Tuesday night, earning a 3-1 victory by scores of 25-18, 25-15, 23-25 and 25-21 at the Liebertz Gymnasium. The victory was also head coach Tony Nocera's first against the Rams. USMMA improved to 11-2 overall (2-0 Skyline), while Farmingdale State fell to 5-2 (0-1 Skyline).
 
Match File

• Box Score
• WATCH: Post Match Interview With Anna Kelly 

Freshman Anna Kelly (Orange, Texas) turned in a huge all-around performance with a match-high 16 kills on a .481 hitting percentage while also collecting a match-high 22 digs for a double-double. Junior Maddie Mayer (Centennial, Colo.) added 10 kills while hitting .333, while freshman Sophie Phillips (Huffman, Texas) finished with eight kills and three block assists. Junior Sydney Douglas (Herndon, Va.) and senior Erin Stillinger (Keller, Texas) each contributed six kills as the Mariners finished with 57 kills and hit .243 as a team.
 
Freshman Miranda Zeng (Cupertino, Calif.) directed the offense with a match-high 49 assists and added nine digs, while senior Alexa Tipps (Palmdale, Calif.) finished with 18 digs. Douglas and sophomore Carly Soboloski (Peoria, Ariz.) each served two aces as USMMA totaled seven for the match. The Mariners held a 57-37 advantage in kills and a 67-48 edge in digs while outhitting Farmingdale State, .243-.109.
 
The teams went back and forth early in the opening set before the Mariners broke a 10-10 tie with four straight points, highlighted by a pair of Mayer kills and a Douglas kill, to move ahead 14-10. USMMA maintained control from there, and Mayer eventually put away the final point to give the Mariners a 25-18 opening-set victory.
 
The second set was tied at 11-11 before USMMA completely took over. The Mariners rattled off nine consecutive points to build a 20-11 advantage, with Zeng controlling a lengthy service run that included kills from Douglas and Stillinger and a Douglas-Phillips block. Kelly later put down a kill to make it 24-15 before a Farmingdale State attack error closed out the 25-15 win.
 
Farmingdale State responded in the third and built a 14-8 advantage before the Mariners fought their way back. USMMA eventually pulled even at 21-21 and took a 23-22 lead on a freshman Candy Saz-Price (Cabot, Ark.) kill, but the Rams answered with the final three points to take the set, 25-23, and extend the match.
 
The Rams carried that momentum into the fourth and opened an 11-5 advantage, but USMMA answered with seven straight points to surge in front, 12-11. The teams continued to trade the lead until an 18-18 tie, when the Mariners scored three straight to move ahead for good. Kelly supplied two late kills, Mayer made it 23-20 and a Saz-Price kill finished off the 25-21 set and the 3-1 victory.
 
For Farmingdale State, Samantha Russo recorded a team-high 12 kills and added 10 digs, while Leslie Wandmacher finished with nine kills and Mackenzie Marquardt added eight. Sarah Rende handed out 25 assists, while Allison Salinas led the Rams with 16 digs.
 
The Mariners return to action at home on Thursday, Oct. 1, when they welcome Skyline Conference opponent Purchase College to the Liebertz Gymnasium. First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m.
 
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