Annville, PA – The Montclair State University volleyball team (17-6) picked up two non-conference wins this Saturday. The Red Hawks started their day rolling past Albright (5-12), 3-0, and then were able to complete a reverse sweep of Lebanon Valley (11-9) with a 3-2 triumph.
VS. ALBRIGHT
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Red Hawks fell behind early, as Albright rattled off five of the first six points of the day. Shortly after and trailing by four, Montclair halted the strong start from the Lions with eight-straight points, kicked off by a service error from Albright. A trio of kills followed from LILY THOMAS, BRYN BAUTISTA, and LUCY CORNELIUS, and after an ace from ISABELLA DECHICO, Bautista tallied another pair of kills before Thomas ended the run to make the score 12-8. Albright rallied, registering the next three to make it a one-point set. The Red Hawks slowly grew their advantage back, aided by four straight to make the score 20-14 on a kill from Cornelius. Following a Lions point, Montclair recorded the final five points of the set, highlighted by a pair of kills from BREANNA CRAIG.
- Albright started strong in the second set, taking six of the first eight points. Montclair countered immediately with the next four, with ERIN SAUNDERS along with Craig and Cornelius tallying kills to equalize. The Lions pushed back in front by two but were met immediately by another Red Hawks run of six straight. With the score 16-13 in favor of Montclair, SOFIA DIPROFIO notched a kill followed by two service aces from ALEENA WHITEHEAD, capped off by an attack error to make the margin seven late. After the sides traded points, a pair of errors from Albright along with a Craig kill expanded the margin to 24-15. The Lions trimmed in with two points, but LEAH ROBLES finished off the set right after.
- Montclair kicked off the third stanza with a 5-2 spurt and would trade the next four points with the Lions. An Albright attack error along with a kill from Robles pushed the margin to five, as the Lions answered with a 7-1 run to take an 11-10 advantage. DiProfio answered right away with a kill, and would have another as part of a 5-2 stretch for the Red Hawks. Albright countered with five straight, with the two sides trading the next six points before the Lions expanded the lead to 22-18. Later in the set, the Lions would prime up set point, 24-21, but Montclair closed out the match on a 5-0 run with a pair of kills from ISABELLE HAWKINSON and a kill from Craig.
INSIDE THE RESULTS
- DiProfio led the way offensively with nine kills, one off her season high. She has posted that mark in two of her last three matches.
- Hawkinson matched the game-high of nine kills for the Red Hawks, with Craig and Bautista right behind with eight.
- Montclair was led by a trio who posted double-digit digs defensively, highlighted by Whitehead with 22, her eighth performance of the campaign with 20-plus. Saunders matched her season-best of 13, with KASEY TRZASKA registering a season-high 11.
VS. LEBANON VALLEY
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Montclair controlled the early advantage with a 7-2 start thanks in part to kills from Bautista and Craig and a pair of blocks by Thomas. Lebanon Valley was able to swing back with a 10-4 run that put them out to a 12-11 lead. Following a block by Cornelius and Craig, LVC mounted another run, this time of 7-2 to command an 18-13 advantage. The Flying Dutchmen held off a Montclair rally until a set-point lead of 24-19. The Red Hawks fired back with six unanswered points to take a 25-24 lead, but a bad set killed their momentum, and Lebanon Valley was able to escape with a 28-26 win in set one.
- Bautista fronted the 6-1 lead in the second set with a kill and two service aces. Facing a 9-3 deficit, Lebanon Valley was able to chip away at the lead, using numerous kills and service aces. The set worked its way to a 16-14 Red Hawk lead, where the Flying Dutchmen used a trio of points to take their first lead at 17-16. Three kills from Bautista highlighted a 6-1 swing for a 22-18 lead, but LVC struck back seven unanswered to take another competitive set win, 25-22.
- LVC seemed to be running away with the match, jumping out in front 7-2. The Montclair offense kept the match alive and saw five different student-athletes record kills up to a 14-13 LVC lead. After the two teams traded points, Craig swung down a kill that ignited an 8-1 run that jumped Montclair out to a 22-17 edge. Lebanon Valley fought hard to earn the sweep, scoring six of the next seven points to tie the match at 23-23, but kills from Hawkinson and Craig secured a 25-23 set-three win and kept the match alive for Montclair.
- Set four saw the Flying Dutchmen get out in front 7-1. A tag-team block by Thomas and DiProfio helped seven of the next nine to narrow the deficit to 9-8. Following a LVC kill, Hawkinson sparked a 7-1 run that pushed Montclair into the lead at 15-11. Montclair was able to keep a comfortable distance, never allowing Lebanon Valley to gain a true advantage, and came away with a 25-19 win to force a fifth set.
- Kills from Bautista and a block by both DiProfio and Craig got Montclair out to a 4-2 lead. Following an LVC kill, Hawkinson hammered down a kill that sparked a 5-0 run for a 9-3 advantage. The Flying Dutchmen were able to cut the lead to 13-9, but DiProfio and Hawkinson iced the set at 15-10 and helped Montclair complete the reverse.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
- The Red Hawks saw their highest production of the season in kills (68), assists (60), digs (96), and total blocks (12).
- Their kills total is tied for the sixth-most in single-match history and tied for fourth in a five-set match.
- Their assist total is tied for the ninth-best mark in single-match history and tied for sixth-best in a five-set match.
- Their 12 total blocks are tied for the ninth-best mark in a five-set match in program history
- Bautista was stellar with 20 kills and 19 digs, upping her double-double to nine on the season.
- Also seeing double-digit kills were Craig and Hawkinson, who each finished with 14, while DiProfio finished with 12. Hawkinson and DiProfio each posted season-high performances in that category.
- Back row defense was led by ALEENA WHITEHEAD, who recorded 30 digs today. It was her third time this season reaching 30+ digs. She was joined by Saunders and Trzaska, who each had double-digit digs with 17 and 15, respectively.
- Thomas led the blocks today with seven total blocks. She was followed by six from DiProfio and four from Craig.
- Cornelius amassed 56 assists in the matchup, setting the fifth-best mark in a single-match and the fourth-best in a five-set match.
FROM THE COURT
- "We had a great opening match vs. Albright and had many players contribute to the win. We played a strong game all around. Lebanon Valley gave us a tough match, and they played extremely well. I was proud of our response from two sets down; we settled down and focused on winning the next point. This was a tough test for us on the road, and being able to return with two wins is a boost entering another conference match on Tuesday." Head Coach Eduardo Stawinski
UP NEXT
- Montclair hits the road for an NJAC showdown at Rutgers-Camden on Tuesday, October 20 at 7:00 p.m.
