NEW BRITAIN, Conn. – The Sacred Heart University women's volleyball team suffered a four-set loss to in-state foe Central Connecticut State on Friday evening in Northeast Conference (NEC) play in New Britain, Conn.
Records:
Sacred Heart: 9-13, 8-2 NEC
CCSU: 4-18, 3-7 NEC
Top Performers:
Gaby Zovko: 33 assists, 16 digs, 5 kills
Camryn Luginbuhl: 19 kills, 12 digs, .255 hitting percentage
Dominique Felix: 11 kills, 10 digs, 2 blocks
How It Happened:
The Blue Devils took the early lead in the opening set, going ahead 7-1 after eight points. The Pios answered with a 7-1 run of their own to tie the score at 8-all. CCSU then began to add to its lead, going up by four, 18-14, late in the frame. Sacred Heart cut the deficit to three, 24-21, with a 3-0 run, but the home team held on to take the first 25-21.
The second set started evenly contested until a 5-2 run by the Blue Devils gave them a 9-6 advantage. The Pioneers answered by taking six of the next seven points to go up 12-10.
Dominique Felix commanded the Pios' offense during the run with two aces and a kill. A 5-0 surge by SHU widened the lead to seven, 17-10, as the Pioneers rode that momentum to a 25-20 win to even the match.
The third and fourth sets were very similar, as both finished with CCSU taking 25-17 wins. Sacred Heart took an early 7-3 lead in the third, but the Blue Devils went on to win 22 of the following 32 points to take the set. The fourth frame started with Central going ahead until a Sacred Heart rally cut the deficit to four, 16-12. Unfortunately for the Pioneers, the Blue Devils were too far gone as they took the set to seal a four-set win.
Three Pioneers finished today's match with a double-double, as
Gaby Zovko,
Camryn Luginbuhl and Felix all accomplished the feat. Zovko tallied another outstanding stat line, posting 33 assists on the team's 48 kills to go along with a season-high, tying 16 digs and five kills. Luginbuhl led all players with a season-best, tying 19 kills and 12 digs. Felix recorded an 11-kill, 10-dig double-double.
Jasmine Rogers came close to recording a double-double with 23 digs and nine assists.
Up Next:
The Pioneers will next make the trip to Loretto, Pa., to battle the Red Flash of Saint Francis University on Friday, Nov. 3, at 5 p.m.
