DURHAM, N.H. – The Stony Brook University women's volleyball team (11-11, 5-3 America East) concluded its two-game weekend road trip with a split as it fell to New Hampshire (14-9, 5-3 America East) in straight sets on Sunday. The Seawolves battled tough, but late rallies in the second and third sets pushed the Wildcats to victory in the match.
Despite falling in straight sets, Stony Brook did not go down easily as it controlled leads late into the final two sets. The Wildcats were able to squeeze out wins in the second and third sets due to late runs that put them out in front towards the conclusion of each set.
New Hampshire took the opening set by the final margin of 25-19. The Wildcats went ahead early thanks to an 8-1 run that put them ahead, 14-7, early in the set. The Seawolves battled back and were able to get it to as close as 23-19 late in the frame, but New Hampshire finished the set off with back-to-back kills to clinch it in its favor.
Redshirt junior middle blocker
Enitan Omolewa led the charge for Stony Brook in the second set as she notched four kills in the stanza. Omolewa helped the Seawolves take a 21-16 lead late in the second set. The Wildcats responded by going on a 9-1 run to go ahead and close the set out with a win to extend its advantage in the match, 2-0.
Just like in the second set, the Seawolves received a standout effort from Omolewa as she racked up six of her 12 kills in the third set alone. Stony Brook and New Hampshire battled back-and-forth in the third, with both teams going on significant runs. The Wildcats' final run of the match proved to be the difference maker as they concluded the third set on a 5-1 run to clinch a third set win by the final set score of 26-24.
STATS AND NOTES
- Omolewa finished with a team-best 12 kills, six of which came in the third set alone. It marked her seventh match this season that she totaled double-digit kills and it was the first time that she did so since recording 13 against New Hampshire on October 8. Omolewa also picked up five digs in the match.
- Sophomore setter Torri Henry dished out 31 assists and picked up seven digs. It was the 17th time this season that she finished a match with 30 or more assists. She has handed out 30 or more assists in five consecutive matches.
- Freshman outside hitter Erin Garr totaled eight kills and four digs.
- Senior libero Paige Jaeger provided a jolt off the bench with a team-high eight digs and three aces. The three aces tied a career-high; she also tallied three aces in a match against Florida State on September 13, 2019, and against Albany on October 11, 2019.
QUOTES FROM THE SEAWOLVES
"This was a tough one. I thought we really struggled to execute early in the match which caused us stress. When we were finally able to get into a rhythm in one area we fell off in another. Credit New Hampshire for exposing us in those areas. We will definitely get better from this film, but it's not ideal to have to learn those lessons from a loss," said head coach
Kristin Belzung.
NEXT UP
Stony Brook is back on the court next Sunday, October 31, when it hosts Hartford inside Pritchard Gymnasium at 1 p.m. The Seawolves swept the Hawks in their first meeting this season on October 22.
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