Skyhawks rally back from 2-0 deficit before falling to Chargers in final game
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| Freshman Kelsey Weymouth posted career-highs in kills and digs against New Haven for her second double-double this season. |
WEST HAVEN, Conn. (November 13, 2012) – The eighth-seeded Stonehill College women's volleyball team dug its way out of a 2-0 deficit but eventually fell to the first-seeded New Haven Chargers, 3-2, by scores of 20-25, 16-25, 31-29, 25-22 and 8-15 on Tuesday night at Charger Gymnasium in the quarterfinal round of the Northeast-10 Conference (NE-10) Volleyball Championship.
Freshman outside hitter Kelsey Weymouth (North Attleboro, Mass./North Attleboro) compiled a team-high 14 kills (.367 hitting percentage) and notched 19 digs, both career highs, and also added one block assist to lead the Skyhawks attack. Junior outside hitter Sydney Maxey (Hutto, Texas/Hutto) posted 13 kills, 17 digs and one service ace.
Sophomore middle blocker Mary-Kate Catton (San Diego, Calif./Academy of Our Lady of Peace) added seven kills, four blocks (one solo) and two assists. Classmate and setter Emily Iverson (Elmhurst, Ill./York) tallied her team-leading 16th double-double (eighth-straight) with 45 assists, 17 digs and four kills.
Defensively, senior captain and libero Erin Kelly (Tinley Park, Ill./Marist) led all players in digs with 26 alongside four assists, one kill and one service ace. Junior defensive specialist Jessica Frankowski (Unionville, Conn./Farmington) contributed 11 digs, one assist and one service ace.
New Haven had four players register double-digit efforts in kills with senior outside hitter Keidy Candelaria (Vega Baja, Puerto Rico/Bayamon Military Academy) guiding the attack with 18 putaways, nine digs and one block assist. Junior middle hitter Amber Cannady (Yonkers, N.Y./Charles E. Gorton) collected 14 kills (.250 hitting percentage) and seven blocks (three solo).
Freshman outside hitter Kristen Lee (Colorado Springs, Colo./Liberty) recorded 13 kills, 19 digs, two assists, two block assists and one service ace. Sophomore middle hitter Kristy Atufunwa (Denver, Colo./Denver East) rounded out the quartet with 11 kills, three digs, two block solos and one assist.
The Chargers totaled 65 kills (.181 hitting percentage), 60 assists, three service aces, 96 digs and 13 blocks (five solo). The Skyhawks had 56 kills (.096 hitting percentage), 56 assists, four service aces, 93 digs and ten blocks (two solo).
New Haven took set one, 25-20, despite nine ties and two lead changes and controlled frame two, 25-16, as the Chargers never gave away the lead or allowed the set score to tie.
Stonehill bounced back in a then winner-take-all set three, 31-29, in the most tightly contested game of the match (12 lead chances, four ties). Maxey turned in a set-high eight kills (.375 hitting percentage) while Weymouth had six putaways (.556 hitting percentage). Iverson dished out a game-high 14 assists and the Skyhawks defense help facilitate the rally with a set-high 25 digs.
In set four, Stonehill engineered its highest offensive output – in terms of efficiency – with a .270 hitting percentage in a match that flowed through ten ties and four lead changes. The Skyhawks erased a 22-21 deficit down the stretch with a set-tying kill by Maxey, her second of the game, and another kill by Weymouth, her team-leading fourth putaway in the stanza. New Haven called a timeout trailing 23-22 to sway momentum but Stonehill turned in back-to-back block assists from Catton and junior right-side hitter Kirsten Arvidson (Andover, Mass./Andover) on a pair of Candelaria attacks to force set five.
New Haven responded in the final frame with its second-highest hitting percentage (.214) getting three kills from Lee and two apiece by Candelaria and Cannady to highlight the offense. Stonehill hit -.053 in set five, its lowest output of the quarterfinal match. After two early lead changes and two ties put the score at 4-4, the Chargers went on an 11-4 run to advance to the next round of the NE-10 Volleyball Championship.
Stonehill concludes its season at 13-15 overall and 7-8 in conference play. New Haven will host fourth-seeded Southern Connecticut State University on Friday, November 16 in the semifinal round at Charger Gymnasium at 5 p.m. Second-seeded Adelphi plays sixth-seeded Pace University in the other semifinal matchup. The NE-10 Volleyball Championship finals match will be played on Sunday, November 17 at Charger Gymnasium at 5 p.m.
