BROOKLYN, N.Y. - The Sacred Heart University women's volleyball team advanced to the NEC Tournament Finals for the second time in three years with a sweep over top-seeded LIU Brooklyn in the NEC Tournament Semifinals on Friday afternoon.

Freshman Alix Polk had a game-high 14 kills to lead the Pioneers, who hit .226 for the match as a team. Sarah Ciszek paced the Pioneers with 40 assists and added 10 kills for the double-double.

The Pioneers return to action Saturday, Nov. 7, at 3 p.m., when they take on the winner of the semifinal match between Bryant and Central Connecticut in the NEC Tournament Finals.

Set 1

• LIU Brooklyn opened the set with a 7-3 run

• After SHU battled back to tie the set at 10-10, the teams went back-and-forth to a 17-17 tie

• Liisel Nelis gave SHU an 18-17 lead after recording a kill

• SHU was able to push its lead to 21-17, backed by three Ciszek kills

• With SHU holding set-point to 20 lead, Polk recorded a kill to secure the set win

SET 2

• LIU Brooklyn hopped out to a 12-5 lead in the set

• A Gianna Scioletti kill sparked a 6-0 Pioneer run that was capped by a Nelis service ace

• With SHU trailing 24-21, back-to-back attack errors from the Blackbirds allowed the Pioneers to cut the deficit to 24-23

• After an LIU-Brooklyn timeout, Polk tied the set with a kill

• Back-to-back Blackbird errors secured the set win for the Pioneers

SET 3

• With SHU leading 10-8, the Pioneers were able to push their lead to 14-10

• After LIU Brooklyn cut the SHU lead to 15-14, the Pioneers went on a 4-1 run, capped by a Ciszek kill

• With the set tied at 22-22, the teams traded points to a 27-27 tie

• A kill from Polk gave SHU a 28-27 lead, followed by an attack error from the Blackbirds to seal the game and match

By The Numbers

• SHU hit .226 for the match

• LIU Brooklyn hit .145 for the match

• Polk tied her career-high of four service aces

• Emma Smallcomb recorded 12 digs

• Sarah Ciszek had a game-high 40 assists

• Viktoria Find led the Blackbird with 11 kills