Box Score FAIRFIELD, Conn. – The Sacred Heart women's volleyball team fell to three-time defending Northeast Conference champion LIU Brooklyn in four sets on Saturday night at the William H. Pitt Center, snapping its winning streak at six matches and ending its perfect 5-0 start in league play. It is the first loss for SHU since September 19, as the Pioneers fall to 11-7.
After SHU bounced back to win the third set, 25-20, LIU Brooklyn came out strong in the fourth, using a 9-0 run to jump out to a 12-5 lead. LIU took advantage of four Pioneer errors during the stretch, which included two kills from Mirjana Rajic and Sacred Heart would get no closer than five points as the Blackbirds would pull away for a 25-17 win.
Sacred Heart was unable to overcome 33 errors, one shy of season high, as the Pioneers hit a season-low .117 percent. SHU was also plagued by 13 services errors, a season-high for a four set match.
LIU Brooklyn (5-12, 4-2 NEC) controlled the match at the net, out blocking Sacred Heart 13-5, seven of which came from Nicole Okeke. Tamara Ignjic led the Blackbirds with nine kills, while Nicole Hopton and Adriana Vinas Joy recorded match highs with 26 assists and 15 digs, respectively.
Kiki Robinson recorded her sixth double double of the season with a team high 21 assists and season high 14 digs. Sarah Krufka was one of three Pioneers with double digit kills, leading the match with twelve. Bruna Bon and Tori Kemper added 11 and ten, respectively.
Sacred Heart will look to bounce back tomorrow when it hosts St. Francis Brooklyn for 2 pm match at the Pitt Center.
Noteworthy
- LIU has now defeated SHU seven matches in a row. The last time the Pioneers defeated the Blackbirds was the 2011 NEC Championship game.
How it Happened
- SHU started off slow losing the first set to LIU by a score of 25-14. The Pioneers fell behind early at 9-5 before coming back to within one at 11-10. LIU then rattled off five straight points behind three straight kills and two Sacred Heart errors to take command, as the Pioneers would come no closer than five points.
- Trailing 20-18, Sacred Heart scored the next three points to pull ahead 21-20, capped by back-to-back service aces from Ana Gonzalez to force an LIU Brooklyn timeout. The timeout proved effective, as the Blackbirds would rattle off the next five points to take a two set lead, capitalizing on three Pioneer errors.
- Tied for the fifth time at 9-9, the Pioneers rallied for five unanswered points behind the serving of Robinson. LIU Brooklyn would get as close as two three times, including at 19-17, but SHU would score the next three points from there to ultimately take control and force a fourth set.
