STONY BROOK, N.Y. – It was a big weekend for the Stony Brook volleyball team as it picked up a pair of victories over Quinnipiac, 3-0, and Fordham, 3-2, respectively. The Seawolves opened the season with a sweep of the Bobcats and then put together a thrilling come-from-behind victory over Fordham on Sunday afternoon.
Stony Brook overpowered Quinnipiac in straight sets on Friday to pick up the opening day win. The Seawolves knocked off the Bobcats, 25-14, 25-23, 25-16, to secure their first opening day win since the 2018 season. Junior outside hitter
Leoni Kunz led the attack for Stony Brook as she registered a match-high 13 kills on .632 hitting.
After dropping the first two sets to Fordham on Sunday, the Seawolves rallied from behind the defeat the Rams in five sets, 22-25, 23-25, 25-21, 25-21, 15-12. Freshman outside hitter
Kali Moore, junior middle blocker
Abby Campbell, and junior setter
Torri Henry paced the team to victory.
Moore went off for her first career double-double with 21 kills and 14 digs. Campbell finished with 13 kills on .393 hitting and Henry dished out 53 assists and picked up 15 digs.
MATCH 1: STONY BROOK – 3, QUINNIPIAC – 0 (25-14, 25-23, 25-16)
- Stony Brook opened the season with a sweep over Quinnipiac on Friday night. The win marked the Seawolves' first opening day win since August 24, 2018, when they defeated Jacksonville in five sets.
- The Seawolves and Bobcats went head-to-head for the first time in a decade. The teams last met on August 25, 2012. Stony Brook improved to 10-2 all-time against Quinnipiac.
- Kunz got off to a hot start as she recorded a match-high 13 kills on .632 hitting. She added a pair of blocks en route to tallying 14 points in the win.
- Junior middle blocker Abby Campbell hit an efficient .385 and notched six kills. The middle totaled three blocks and three service aces as she registered 10.5 points.
- Junior setter Torri Henry recorded her first double-double of the season with a match-high 28 assists and 10 digs.
- Junior libero Julia Patsos and junior defensive specialist Sammie Sheppard anchored the Seawolves' defense. Patsos picked up 11 digs, while Sheppard recorded 10 digs in her Stony Brook debut.
- Freshman outside hitter Kali Moore made her collegiate debut and totaled eight kills and eight digs.
MATCH 2: STONY BROOK – 3, FORDHAM – 2 (22-25, 23-25, 25-21, 25-21, 15-12)
- Moore finished her second collegiate match with a match-high tying 21 kills. The Brooklyn, N.Y. native recorded her first career double-double as she picked up 14 digs to go along with her 21 kills. The freshman added five block assists and three aces to her ledger in the win.
- Campbell was a force in the middle as she hit a blistering .393 and totaled 13 kills. The junior also had five block assists and a pair of aces.
- Henry handed out an early season-best 53 assists and picked up 15 digs for her second consecutive double-double.
- Junior outside hitter Lauren Schmitz finished with a near double-double as she had 11 kills and nine digs. Her 11 kills were her most in a match since she totaled 14 in her collegiate debut at St. John's on February 14, 2021.
- Sophomore middle blocker Saige Bradley came through in a big way for the Seawolves. Bradley checked into the match in the third set and recorded five kills and six blocks in her collegiate debut. Her boost of energy helped Stony Brook win three consecutive sets to secure the victory.
- Patsos and Sheppard controlled the defense once again. Patsos picked up 15 digs, while Sheppard tallied nine digs.
QUOTES FROM THE SEAWOLVES
"It obviously feels great to start 2-0 and to do so in Pritchard is even better! I'm especially proud of our group's grit today to comeback and fight for the win after being down 0-2. We focused on getting better defensively as the match went on and in addition to that our attackers were confident in adapting to their defense to score more. We had several opportunities this weekend as a team and I thought we capitalized on them which will hopefully give us confidence in other tight situations moving forward," said head coach
Kristin Belzung as she discussed the team's 2-0 start.
NEXT UP
The Seawolves are back in action next week as they will host the Stony Brook Invitational from September 2-3. Stony Brook opens up tournament play on Friday at 10 a.m., against South Florida. The Seawolves are back on the court on Friday evening to face Maryland at 6:30 p.m.
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