New Rochelle, N.Y. – The Sacred Heart women's volleyball team had its reverse sweep attempt spoiled by the Iona Gaels, dropping a five-set decision on the road to open up the final weekend of the regular season.
Leading the Pioneers on the afternoon was first year outside hitter Abbie Hagedorn, the reigning MAAC Rookie of the Week, who finished with 18 kills and completed the double double with 25 digs, second most on the team.
Joining her in leading the offense was junior Lauren Hubert with 17 kills and first year Ryleigh Short with 15 hammers. Graduate middle Cristina Montanez finished just shy of double figures with nine kills and led all hitters in the match with an impressive .643 attack percentage without an error in 14 total attempts.
Defensively, sophomore libero Miliani Villarreal led the way with 33 digs followed by Hagedorn's 25 and Hubert who also completed a double double with 23. Hubert and Emily Sawyer would lead the way with two blocks apiece.
Records:
Sacred Heart: 10-19, 7-10 MAAC
Iona: 12-13, 12-5 MAAC
Top Performers:
Abbie Hagedorn: 18 kills, 25 digs
Lauren Hubert: 17 kills, 23 digs, 2 blocks
Ryleigh Short: 15 kills, 11 digs
Brielle Laferriere: 45 assists
Miliani Villarreal: 33 digs, 13 assists
How it Happened:
Sacred Heart opened up the match taking the first three points, the first two on Iona errors before Lauren Hubert registered the first kill of the afternoon. Following early ties at 5, 6, 7 and 8, the Gaels rattled off four-straight points to take their first lead at 12-8. SHU would respond by taking five of the next six points to knot the score at 13 and eventually regain the lead at 17-15.
It would continue to go back-and-forth with Iona having the first opportunity at set point spoiled by the Pioneers. Sacred Heart would also see its first chance at taking the set spoiled with the point that tied the match at 26 also beginning a series of three-straight as the Gaels took set one by a 28-26 margin.
In the second set it was the Gaels who picked up the first two points of the frame, both on Pioneer hitting errors. Iona would never relinquish that early, quickly building it up to a six point advantage at 9-3. Midway through the set, the Pioneers looked to muster a comeback down by eight, pulling within a pair using a 7-1 run, however the Gales answered by taking four of the next five and took a 2-0 lead in the match with a 25-21 victory.
After trading the first four points of the third set, the Pioneers mounted a 4-1 run that opened up an 8-3 lead with the final two points in that stretch coming on back-to-back aces from Hubert. Sacred Heart kept its foot on the gas, quickly extending its lead into double figures and to as much as 20-7 before Siena began to chip into that lead. Despite Siena taking eight of the final 12 points, the Pioneers scored the 25-16 win to extend the match as Abbie Hagedorn closed out the set with a kill.
Sacred Heart opened up the fourth set with the first two points, but despite never relinquishing that early lead, the set remained close throughout with five ties along the way. Following a 14-14 draw, the Pioneers began to sneak away, scoring five of the next to take a 19-15 lead and never looked back. This time around it was Ryleigh Short who ended things in the set, forcing a match-deciding fifth set.
The Gaels regrouped coming out of the final intermission and opened up the fifth set with a 3-0 lead and quickly extended that to an eight-point advantage at 10-2 following a five-point rally that ended with back-to-back service aces. Coming down the stretch, Sacred Heart could only get as close as 13-6 before Iona closed out the victory with back-to-back points.
Up Next:
The Pioneers will close out the regular season portion of their schedule on Saturday afternoon when they travel to the Bronx to take on the Manhattan Jaspers at Draddy Gymnasium. First serve in the MAAC battle is set for 4:00 p.m. and can be seen live on the Jaspers Sports Network.
