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Niagara University Athletics

3
Winner Niagara NIA 2-5
1
Hartford HARTFORD 1-6
Winner
Niagara NIA
2-5
3
Final
1
Hartford HARTFORD
1-6
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Niagara NIA 25 24 25 26 (3)
Hartford HARTFORD 14 26 19 24 (1)
3
Winner Niagara NIA 3-5
1
CCSU CCSU 4-3
Winner
Niagara NIA
3-5
3
Final
1
CCSU CCSU
4-3
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Niagara NIA 25 18 27 25 (3)
CCSU CCSU 20 25 25 18 (1)

Game Recap: Women's Volleyball |

Volleyball Collects Two Wins At Hartford Invitational

HARTFORD, Conn. – The Niagara Purple Eagles collected a pair of victories to start action at the Hartford Invitational on Friday. NU defeated the host, Hartford, in four sets before ending the day by grinding past Central Connecticut State in four sets.

SCORE: Niagara 3, Hartford 1 (25-14, 24-26, 25-19, 26-24)
TOURNAMENT: Hartford Invitational
RECORDS: Niagara (2-5), Hartford (1-6)

Match Summary
Niagara's defense and effective passing set the tone early in the opening set as NU raced out to a 12-4 lead. The Purple Eagles held the Hawks to a .026 hitting percentage, while NU had a blistering .314 hitting percentage. A kill by Caroline Leitch gave Niagara its largest lead of the set, 23-10, en route to a 25-14 first set win.

Hartford even the match at 1-1 in the second set. NU led 20-15 before the Hawks rallied to take a 24-23. NU fight off set point with a kill by Nicole Matheis, but Hartford scored the next two points to clinch the set. The Purple Eagles regained momentum by taking the third set 25-19. With the score knotted at 6-6, NU went on an 8-3 run to break open the set.

NU held off a late rally by the host in the fourth set. NU led 20-15, but soon found itself trailing 21-20. The Purple Eagles eventually went back in front and served for the match at 24-22; though, Hartford tied the set at 24-24. An attacking error by Hartford opened the door for the Purple Eagles, and Matheis shut it with her 11th kill of the match.

Eagle's Eye On…
  • Caroline Leitch led Niagara with a season-high 12 kills and had a team-high .296 hitting percentage.
  • Nicole Matheis recorded her team-leading second double-double with 11 kills and a season-high 16 digs.
  • Rachel Hall's season-high 21 assists led NU, while Meghan Higley chipped in 16 assists.
  • A pair of Purple Eagles had 20-plus digs. Rylee Hunt led the match with 21 digs and Jaycie Roberts had a career-high 20 digs.
  • Hunt moved into second place on the career digs list, surpassing Micole Daluisio ('05) who has 1,793 digs.

Coach's Corner
  • "Anytime you can come out of a match against a quality opponent on their home court with a victory, you are doing something right. I thought our setters did a great job distributing the ball, which led to kills spread across a number of players." – head coach Vilis Ozols

SCORE: Niagara 3, Central Connecticut State 1 (25-20, 18-25, 27-25, 25-18)
TOURNAMENT: Hartford Invitational
RECORDS: Niagara (3-5), CCSU (4-3)

Match Summary
Niagara battled with Central Connecticut State through four sets, including winning a dramatic third set. In the first set, the Purple Eagles gradually pulled away late. The score was tied at 15-15 when a kill by Nicole Matheis started a 4-1 spurt. CCSU trimmed the lead to 19-18, but Matheis once again came up big with a kill to start a 4-0 run. Jada Carrol provided the final point in the set for a 25-20 win.

After the Blue Devils won the second set to tie the match, the teams engaged in a thrilling third set that featured 15 ties and five lead changes. CCSU had the largest lead of the set at 10-7 and neither team led by more than two points after the score was tied at 10-10.  NU faced set point twice (24-23 and 25-24), before reeling off three straight points to win the set. An attacking error by CCSU tied the set at 25-25, and NU then followed with consecutives from Caroline Leitch and Draik Banks. NU finished with a match-high 18 kills in the set.

The fourth set was tightly contested until Niagara scored five straight points to break a 14-14. Niagara did not relinquish the lead on its way to a 25-18 set win.

Eagle's Eye On…
  • Rylee Hunt had a match-high 37 digs, which are the second most in her career (42).
  • Nicole Matheis recorded a double-double for the second straight match. She finished with a team-high 12 kills and added 15 digs.
  • Rachel Hall had her first double-double as a Purple Eagle with 21 assists and a season-high 16 digs.
  • Jaycie Roberts had 11 digs and eight kills.
  • Draik Banks was second on the team with 11.5 points. She had eight kills, including six in the third set, and a career-high seven block assists.
  • NU had a season-high nine blocks.
  • Niagara has won consecutive matches for the first time this season.

Coach's Corner
  • "That was a tough tough match and I was so proud of how our team persevered in the face of the CCSU offense. Our defense was outstanding with 4 players in double digit digs and Rylee was on another plane with 37 digs. Both Draik and Aleks had great offensive plays and Rachel's 21 assists were huge!
 
Up Next
  • Niagara wraps up play at the Hartford Invitational on Saturday against NJIT at 2 p.m.

Stay connected with the Purple Eagles through social media. Follow Niagara Athletics on Twitter @NUPurpleEagles and for volleyball updates at @NiagaraVB. Check in with the Purple Eagles on Facebook/PurpleEagles and on Instagram @NUPurpleEagles. 
 
 
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