Senior Stephanie Hopkins had a match-high 19 kills Sunday vs. Loyola. |
NIAGARA UNIVERSITY, N.Y. – Seniors Stephanie Hopkins (Tonawanda/Sweet Home) and Michelle LeSouder (Stratford, Ont.) combined for 34 kills as Niagara University defeated Loyola College, 30-13, 30-19, 30-22, Sunday afternoon in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference volleyball action at the Gallagher Center.
Hopkins had a match-high 19 kills while LeSouder added 15 in the three-game win. Niagara improves to 16-9 overall and finishes the MAAC regular season 6-3. The six wins are the most conference wins by Niagara since the 1991 team also won six. The 16 victories are the most in the program history since 1993, when the Purple Eagles had a school-record 19 wins.
Classmate Micole Daluisio (Lancaster/Lancaster) had a match-high 22 digs.
"I had very little to say before the match," Niagara head coach Rocco Lucci said. "The seniors just took over and dominated. They had every intention to beat that team and they did.
"And we did it playing well in every phase of the game, our offense was good, our defense was there and our passing was much better than yesterday," Lucci continued. "When we were down, we kept our composure and took it to the other team. We have such a well-balanced attack it was hard for Loyola to figure out who was going to get the ball. It was a good team win."
Niagara opened a 19-6 lead in the first game buy breaking away with a two four-point scoring runs and a six-point scoring run. The Purple Eagles then put away the game with a seven-point scoring run fueled by Hopkins recording a kill and two blocks. Hopkins later recorded a kill for the win.
The Purple Eagles opened a 12-3 lead in game two behind three LeSouder kills. LeSouder also came on strong at the end of the game, recording two kills and a block assist in the 30-19 win.
Loyola and Niagara traded points in the third game before the Greyhounds pulled out to a 14-9 lead. Niagara responded, eventually taking a 16-15 lead on a kill by sophomore Maurin Lawrence (Corfu, N.Y.). The teams traded points before the Purple Eagles ran off seven-straight points for a 24-17 lead. LeSouder had two kills in that r
