TOWSON, Md. -- The No. 5 seed Stony Brook volleyball team secured their first CAA Tournament match victory in program history on the way to a 3-0 sweep (25-17, 25-22, 25-15) over the No. 4 seed Charleston Cougars on Thursday at TU Arena.
With the victory, the Seawolves advanced into the semifinal round for the first time in its CAA history, and will get an opportunity to face the host and No. 1 seed Towson on Friday.
The Seawolves' offense was paced by Kali Moore, who finished with 16 kills on the day while accumulating a hitting percentage of .316, and by Leoni Kunz, who had 14 kills while hitting .367. Defensively, Stony Brook had two players reach double-figures in digs as Julia Patsos had 18 and Lauren Schmitz had 11.
HOW IT HAPPENED
SET 1 | After
Torri Henry tallied back-to-back aces to take a 3-2 lead, the Seawolves regained control of the set-one lead at 8-7 following a kill by
Ava Jackson, and never relinquished it, winning the opening set 25-17. Stony Brook led by as many as 11 points at 21-10 after a kill by
Ava Jackson before finishing off the set with the eight point victory. The squad made their presence felt early by securing 19 kills in the frame, including six by Moore. Also, Patsos tallied her 1,000th career dig in the frame.
SET 2 | Stony Brook continued to roll by securing a 25-22 victory in set number two. The squad battled back-and-forth early and grabbed the advantage for good at 10-9, which started a 5-0 run that saw the Seawolves jump out to a 14-9 lead and never look back. Jackson finished off the set with a kill.
SET 3 | Stony Brook took set three to earn a victory by sweep. The
Seawolves led from the opening point on in the set to secure a 25-15 victory. Stony Brook opened up as much as a 10-point lead at 24-14 before
Ayanna Pierre Louis closed out the set with a kill, as the Seawolves totaled 20 kills in the process on .395 hitting. Also, the squad had their most assists (20), digs (23), and blocks (3) in the victory-securing set.
STATS AND NOTES
- Stony Brook put together a strong attacking performance, notching 53 kills in the match on .395 hitting percentage.
- Torri Henry had a match-high two aces and 42 assists in the win. The CAA Setter of the Year has 40 or more assists in five of her last seven matches.
- Moore's team-high 16 kills marked double-figure kills in six of her last seven matches.
- This was the first-ever CAA Tournament match victory for the Seawolves.
- The conference win improved Stony Brook's record to 17-13 overall.
QUOTES FROM THE SEAWOLVES
"Conference tournament is high pressure and emotional and I'm proud of our group for coming in focused and scrapping from the start. Defensively, it wasn't the most pure game but we found ways to keep the ball off the ground and get arms out of tough situations. It's a quick turnaround against a good and fresh Towson team in the semifinals tomorrow," said head coach
Kristin Belzung.
NEXT UP
Stony Brook volleyball will return to the court tomorrow for their first appearance in the CAA Championship semifinals in program history. The squad will battle No. 1 seed and host Towson at 4 p.m. and the match will be streamed live on FloSports.
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