Volleyball Taken Down At Home By Conn College Wednesday

WEST HARTFORD, Conn. - The University of Saint Joseph (USJ) volleyball team was taken down in straight sets at home, 3-0, by the visiting Connecticut College (Conn) Camels in an intrastate non-conference match Wednesday evening inside the O'Connell Center in West Hartford.

GAME INFORMATION
Score: USJ 0, Connecticut College 3 (22-25, 19-25, 22-25)
Records: USJ (2-9), Conn (4-1)
Location: O'Connell Center (West Hartford, Conn.)

KEY MOMENTS

• Connecticut College jumped on the Blue Jays early in the opening set and raced out to a 10-3 lead after a kill from junior outside hitter Natasha Shrivastava (San Diego, Calif.).
• The Blue Jays fought back and cut their deficit to 13-9 before a Conn 4-0 run built the Camels lead back out to 17-9 and forced a USJ timeout.
• Saint Joseph came out of the timeout strong and used a 6-1 burst to pull back within striking distance in the set, 18-15.
• USJ would then pull within two points, 22-20, following back-to-back kills from senior outside hitter Hannah Benson (Terryville, Conn.) and junior middle hitter Victoria Adler (Berlin, Conn.) to force the Camels into their first timeout.
• However, Conn would stay composed and scored three of the next five points to take the opening set, 25-22.
• The Blue Jays came out clicking on all cylinders to start the second set and raced out to a 7-4 lead capped by a kill from junior right-side hitter Claire Quinn (Canton, Mass.) to force an early Conn timeout.
• USJ maintained its lead, but Conn slowly chipped away until the set was tied at 15-all.
• Both teams traded points until the Camels used a 6-0 run, which featured a pair of kills from junior outside hitter Emma Wheeler (Meredith, N.H.), to pull ahead 23-18 and eventually win the second set, 25-19.
• The Camels started the third set on the right foot and led 7-2 early to force USJ into a timeout.
• The Blue Jays would not go quietly though and scored 11 of the next 16 points to storm back and take a 13-12 lead in the set. Back-to-back kills from senior outside hitter Sarah Haire (Vernon, Conn.) highlighted the run.
• Both teams traded significant runs over the remainder of the set, but Conn had the final say and with a kill from Wheeler, the Camels ended the set, 25-22, and the match, 3-0.

NOTES

• Benson led the way offensively for the Blue Jays on the night and finished with a team-high seven kills and chipped in defensively with eight digs.
• Senior outside hitter Shannon Carey (Bayport, N.Y.) turned in five kills, seven digs, and a solo block for USJ.
• USJ's senior setter Nicole Albert (Meriden, Conn.) logged her second double-double of the season with 10 assists and 10 digs in the setback.
• Wheeler finished with a match-high 14 kills and impressive .600 hitting percentage to lead the way for the Camels.
• Conn's senior middle blocker Katie Gunderman (Oakland, Calif.) chipped in with nine kills with a .412 hitting percentage to go along with three block assists.
• Shrivastava ran the Camels' offense and posted a match-high 21 assists. She also added eight digs.
• The Camels registered a .132 hitting percentage as a team compared to .042 for the Blue Jays.

UP NEXT

Volleyball returns back to its home court for its 2022 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) openers and will host Anna Maria College and Lasell University for a GNAC tri-match on Saturday, September 24. Opening serve of the first game between the Blue Jays and AMCATS is slated for 11:00 a.m. with the Blue Jays' final match versus the Lasers scheduled for approximately 3:00 p.m. inside the O'Connell Center in West Hartford.