Annapolis, Md. - For the second night in a row, Stony Brook claimed a five-set victory as they outlasted Coppin State 3-2 (26-24, 26-28, 18-25, 25-19, 15-12) on day two of the Kristen Dickmann Invitational, hosted by Navy.
Ella Sanders had a career night, leading the Seawolves offense with a personal-best 22 kills, as well as finishing second in digs with a season-high 22. She also set a new career best with six blocks.
How It Happened
SET 1 | Down 6-2 at the start, the Seawolves would soon go on to take a 10-9 lead thanks to a pair of blocks and an ace from
Ayanna Pierre Louis. Then, after Coppin State started pulling away with a 19-12 lead,
Zayda Fuertez served up three aces as part of a 6-0 run to make it a one-point game. Though CSU again widened the gap and reached match point at 24-20, three straight errors followed by three points from Sanders and Pierre Louis finished off the set.
SET 2 | Both teams stayed within a point of each other through much of the first half as
Damisi Osibodu,
Quinn Anderson, and Sanders combined for 10 kills before the first media timeout. Later, with Stony Brook trailing by three, Sanders went on a tear with three kills and an ace to tie it at 20-20. Despite getting to match point, however, the Seawolves could not hold on as the Eagles tied it and eventually won 28-26.
SET 3 | Sanders continued to lead the way on offense as she added another three kills early on in the third. Despite this, the Seawolves were unable to slow the Eagles' attack as they trailed by as much as seven out of the media timeout. An 8-3 run featuring kills from
Mercedes Motton and
Taryn Su would briefly cut the lead down to 20-18, but Coppin State responded with five unanswered to end the set.
SET 4 | The fourth set played out completely opposite the third as the Seawolves took an early lead and never trailed. Strong defense at the net led to four quick blocks for Pierre Louis and Osibodu to help make it 15-9 at the timeout. While the Eagles regained some momentum to cut the lead down to 17-14, Stony Brook came right back and closed out the set on an
Avari Amstutz kill to force a fifth.
SET 5 | Osibodu immediately gave Stony Brook a 3-0 lead after recording two blocks and a kill. CSU would come back and tie it at 4-4, the first of six ties in the frame as the two teams traded points throughout. A combined five more blocks from Osibodu and Pierre Louis put the Seawolves back in front 13-10, before one last kill from Sanders got it to match point. An Eagles attack error would seal the victory.
Notable Stats
- Sanders is the first Seawolf to record 20 kills and 20 digs in a match since Kali Moore back on October 26, 2024. This also marks her first double-double of the season and the 13th of her career.
- Fuertez ended the night with a career-high 23 digs.
- Osibodu racked up nine total blocks today, followed by Pierre Louis with eight, as the team combined for 17 blocks, matching their season high against Robert Morris in the season opener.
Up Next
The Kristen Dickmann Invitational concludes tomorrow at 3 p.m. when the Seawolves face the host Navy in the finale. The match will be streamed live on ESPN+.
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