FAIRFIELD, Conn. – The Sacred Heart University women's volleyball team unveiled its 2022 Northeast Conference (NEC) Regular-Season Championship banner in style, topping Le Moyne in three sets on Saturday evening at the Pitt Center. 

Records:
Sacred Heart: 8-10, 7-0 NEC
Le Moyne: 0-17, 0-7 NEC
 
Top Performers:
Gaby Zovko: 20 assists, 5 digs, 5 kills, 5 aces, 4 blocks
Dominique Felix: 10 kills, 4 digs, .261 hitting percentage
Kate Anderson: 6 kills, 4 blocks, .333 hitting percentage
Cristina Montanez: 6 kills, 5 blocks, .750 hitting percentage
 
How It Happened:
The Pioneers controlled the action in the first set, going ahead 8-5 early before building its lead to 10, 18-8, with a 10-3 run. Gaby Zovko commanded the action in a 7-0 surge for the home team, tallying three aces, a kill and an assist in the run. SHU went on to win the set 25-16, capping it with a spike from Cristina Montanez.

With a set in their pocket, the Pios burst out of the gates in the second to go up 7-1 after eight points. Hunter Coppola highlighted an early 5-0 run with a pair of aces. The two teams then began to trade points until a 6-0 run by the home team gave SHU a 16-5 advantage. The Pioneers held the Dolphins to just five points for the rest of the set, taking the second by a convincing 25-10 final score. 

Sacred Heart continued to pour it on in the third set, opening the frame with a 15-4 lead. The Pios' serving excellence continued in a 9-0 SHU run, as Camryn Luginbuhl added three more aces to the team's total. Le Moyne cut slightly into the Pios advantage before the end of the frame, but Sacred Heart won the set and the match on a 3-0 to seal a 25-16 victory. 

Sacred Heart tallied a complete team effort on Saturday, as four Pioneers tallied five-plus kills out of their 32 as a team. Leading the way was Felix with 10 kills, her sixth double-digit kill effort of the season. Kate Anderson and Montanez finished with six kills as middles, hitting .333 and .750, respectively. Zovko continued her run as a jack of all trades, finishing the night with 20 assists, five digs, five kills, five aces and four blocks. Five aces tied a season-high for the first year. 

Up Next:
Sacred Heart will take a break from league play on Wednesday, Oct. 18, for a road 7 p.m. showdown against Bryant in Smithfield, R.I.