Marist volleyball earned its first win of the 2026 season at the Denver Invitational this weekend, posting a 1-2 record across three matches. Sophomore outside hitter Mallory Reck continued to lead the Red Foxes, finishing her stellar weekend with 59 kills and 43 digs as Marist moved to 1-5 on the season.
Marist entered the tournament looking to rebound after a tough weekend at the Maroon and White Classic, where they went winless. The Red Foxes played two five-set matches and a four-set match in Colorado, with a win over Southern Illinois and losses to Idaho and Denver.
The Red Foxes opened tournament play Thursday afternoon against the University of Idaho, falling in a five-set battle. Marist dropped the opening set but responded with a strong second-set performance to even the match, as junior middle blocker Sarah Bumstead and Reck led Marist offensively with three kills apiece.
After Idaho regained the lead in the third set, Marist responded in the fourth frame to even the match once again. Reck powered the Red Foxes with seven kills and four digs, helping Marist force a fifth set. Despite fighting back twice, Marist couldn’t complete the comeback, falling to the Vandals 15-8 in the final set.
Marist looked to bounce back Friday evening against Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, hoping to turn its strong stretches of play into its first victory of the season. The Red Foxes once again found themselves in a five-set match, which resulted in their first win of the season and the first Division I victory for new head coach Annie DeLoid.
Senior outside hitter Sarah Dasic led Marist in the opening set against the Cougars with six kills and five digs, but SIUE narrowly took the set, 26-24. Marist answered with a 25-16 win in the second set, led by five kills from Bumstead and 12 assists from sophomore setter Caelyn Dumas.
The Red Foxes and Cougars traded the next two sets, with SIUE taking the third, 25-19, before Marist responded with a 25-22 fourth-set victory to send the match to a fifth. Marist ultimately kept the Cougars at bay in the deciding period, securing a 16-14 victory.
Marist closed out the weekend against Denver, falling in four sets. After dropping the first two, the Red Foxes responded in the third, with four players recording at least three kills and five players tallying three or more digs. Marist ultimately dropped the final set, falling 3-1 to close the weekend. Next, Marist volleyball aims to get back in the win column in a midweek matchup against Holy Cross, returning to the court on Tuesday, Sept. 8th at 6 p.m.
Edited by August Lieberman
Photo and Graphic by Xavier Angel
For more coverage of Marist athletics, follow @cfmarist on Instagram, X, TikTok and Bluesky, and sign up to receive daily alerts here.