Sophomore Laura Huselton led Stonehill to a big three-set rally with 18 kills and 11 digs tonight. |
Stonehill Runs Past UMass Lowell, 3-2
Skyhawks erase 0-2 deficit behind 18 kills by Huselton
EASTON, Mass. (October 7, 2009) - Stonehill College erased a two-set deficit by reeling off three-straight set wins to claim a 3-2 (15-25, 16-25, 25-15, 25-21, 15-9) victory over the University of Massachusetts Lowell in a key Northeast-10 Conference volleyball matchup at Merkert Gymnasium tonight.
UMass Lowell took the first two games rather handily, but Stonehill stormed back to post a comfortable win in set three before grinding out a four-point win in the fourth set and jumping on top early in the decisive fifth.
Sophomore Laura Huselton (Penfield, N.Y./Penfield) led Stonehill with 18 kills, 11 digs, a service ace and block assist. Junior Laura Noonan (Hampstead, N.H./Bishop Guertin) contributed 14 kills and two big solo blocks, while sophomore Michelle Thornhill (Canyon Lake, Calif./Temescal Canyon) posted ten kills, 11 digs and two aces.
Junior Andrea Wirth (Mesa, Ariz./St. Mary's) dished out 46 assists to go with six digs and three aces, while classmate Justine Thompson (Merrimack, N.H./Bishop Guertin) chipped in a match-high 33 digs.
Junior Laura Noonan added 14 kills and two key solo blocks to assist the Stonehill rally. |
Junior Sarah Coscia (Pittsfield, Mass./Pittsfield) led UMass Lowell with a match-high 21 kills, while senior Elsa LeGrand (Highlands Ranch, Colo./Mountain Vista) posted 14 kills, seven digs and four block assists. Junior Jillian Hadder (Yucaipa, Calif./Yucaipa) finished with 13 kills, 14 digs and two blocks, while classmate Vicky Wong (Tewksbury, Mass./Tewksbury Memorial) added 11 kills and 13 digs.
Senior Nichole Rondeau (Dracut, Mass./Dracut) dished out 47 assists for the River Hawks to go with 12 digs and two aces, while senior Allie Eide (Gresham, Ore./Gresham) contributed 20 digs.
Stonehill was down a point (19-20) late in the fourth set, but a Noonan kill knotted the score and sparked the Skyhawks run to clinch the set. Two UML attacking errors and a service ace from freshman Erin Kelly (Tinley Park, Ill./Marist) brought the Skyhawks within a point of the set win, before Thornhill closed the set out with a kill.
In the fifth and final set, Noonan posted a solo block to put Stonehill up 7-3. UMass Lowell rallied to within 7-6 after a Huselton hitting error, but the Skyhawks opened a five-point cushion (11-6) after a kill from Noonan and a pair from Huselton before a UML hitting error. After a River Hawks timeout, the teams traded points the rest of the way with Stonehill junior Anna Berthiaume (Somersworth, N.H./Somersworth) closing the match out with a kill.
Stonehill (9-5, 4-1 NE-10) is back in action on Saturday when it visits Saint Michael's College for a Conference clash at 1 p.m. The Skyhawks return home next Friday, October 16 to host Pace University at 7 p.m. UMass Lowell (11-7, 6-2 NE-10) participates in the Queens College Tournament in Flushing, N.Y., on Saturday.
