Montclair State University Athletics

Montclair, NJ – The Montclair State University volleyball team (19-6) honored its four seniors before sweeping Hunter College (10-9), 3-0, inside the Panzer Athletic Center. The Red Hawks also extended their win streak to eight matches in a row.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Montclair wasted little time taking control of the opening frame, scoring the first five points behind kills from LILY THOMAS, SOFIA DIPROFIO and BRYN BAUTISTA. Hunter cut the deficit to 7-3, but the Red Hawks answered and eventually rattled off five straight points to push the advantage to 13-4. ISABELLE HAWKINSON put down three kills during the stretch, while BREANNA CRAIG added a kill and teamed with Hawkinson on a block. Montclair continued to pour it on, widening the gap to 22-8 behind a service ace from Bautista. Hawkinson brought the Red Hawks to set point with another kill before DiProfio closed out the dominant 25-10 victory.
• The second set was much tighter, with Montclair building an early 9-4 advantage behind a kill from KASEY TRZASKA and another from Hawkinson. Hunter slowly chipped away and eventually erased a 14-10 deficit with four unanswered points to tie the frame. The Hawks continued their push and moved ahead 19-16, but kills from Craig and Bautista helped Montclair battle back before a service ace from ZOEY HORN put the Red Hawks in front, 20-19. The two sides traded points deep into the frame, with Hunter holding a 22-21 edge before Thomas tied it with a kill. Montclair reached set point at 24-22, but Hunter answered with two straight to force extra points. DiProfio broke the 24-24 tie with a kill, and an attack error by the Hawks sealed the 26-24 victory and a 2-0 match lead.
• Montclair regained control from the start of the third, jumping out to a 6-2 advantage behind kills from Craig, Thomas, Bautista and Hawkinson. The Red Hawks continued to create separation and turned a 9-5 edge into a commanding 13-5 lead, with Bautista and Craig each recording kills during the run. Hunter briefly cut the deficit to six, but Montclair responded with five unanswered points to widen the gap to 19-8. The Hawks made a late push to get within six at 23-17, but a service error put Montclair at match point before Craig hammered down the final kill to finish off the 25-17 set victory and the sweep.

 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Thomas, who finished with four total blocks, reached a career milestone with 300 total blocks. She is one of just three Red Hawks (Anna Chesnakova & Jill Gastelu) to record 300 blocks in their careers.
• Bautista led the Red Hawks with 12 kills while hitting .300 for the match. She also added five digs and tied for the team lead with two service aces.
• Hawkinson finished with eight kills, while DiProfio added seven on a .313 hitting percentage. Craig chipped in six kills while swinging .400.
• LUCY CORNELIUS dished out a match-high 33 assists while adding seven digs.
• ALEENA WHITEHEAD once again led the back row, posting a match-high 16 digs. ERIN SAUNDERS added nine, while LEAH ROBLES collected eight.
• Montclair held Hunter to a .000 hitting percentage for the match, including a -.087 mark in the opening set. The Red Hawks finished with 41 kills compared to 19 for the Hawks and held a 56-42 advantage in digs.
• Before the match, Montclair honored its four seniors on Senior Day. The celebrated seniors were ERIN SAUNDERS, ZOEY HORN, LILY THOMAS, and SOFIA DIPROFIO

 
FROM THE COURT

• "Today was a great day overall on the court with our performance and honoring our senior group. Lily, Sofia, and Zoey have done an outstanding job as student-athletes during their four years with our program. Erin has made a significant impact this year as a transfer, and her transition to our program was seamless. Looking forward to the last few weeks as we close out the regular season!" Head Coach Eduardo Stawinski

 
UP NEXT

• Montclair remains home for an NJAC matchup against Rowan University on Tuesday, October 27. First serve inside the Panzer Athletic Center is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.