OLD WESTBURY, N.Y. – The Saint Anselm College volleyball team kicked off its 2015 campaign at the Long Island Invitational Saturday afternoon, dropping a pair of matches to Southern Connecticut State, 3-1 (14-25, 25-16, 29-27, 25-18), and Post University, 3-0 (25-21, 25-17, 25-21).
STANDOUT PERFORMERS
• Sophomore middle Amanda Williams (North Andover, Mass.) led Saint Anselm in the day's opener, recording 14 kills on a blistering .458 hitting percentage. She cooled off a bit against Post, but added seven more putaways against the Eagles. She also added three blocks in each matchup Saturday.
• Sophomore outside Katy Teets (Dix Hills, N.Y.) led the Hawks with 11 kills in the nightcap to go with nine more in the opening matchup against SCSU. Teets also seven digs against the Owls.
• Junior right side Brennah Gladwill (Citrus Heights, Calif.) recorded 11 kills against SCSU and added seven against Post to complement 21 digs between the two matches.
• Freshman setter Jewel Hays (Aliso Viejo, Calif.) recorded 45 assists in her college debut and 13 more against Post. Defensively, she recorded 10 digs against the Owls and nine more against Eagles.
• Junior libero CC Chrisom (Dover, N.H.) picked up 16 digs in the season opener and six more against Post. Sophomore defensive specialist Danielle Isbell (Poway, Calif.) added 16 digs between the two matches.
• Freshman outside Sarah Lowery (Chicago, Ill.) started her collegiate career with an 11-kill effort to go with a team-high 17 digs against Southern Connecticut St.
• Freshman Riley Grussing (Willmar, Minn.) offered up a team-high 17 assists against Post.
HOW IT HAPPENED
…vs Southern Connecticut State
• The Hawks came out ablaze in the first set against Southern Connecticut St., surging to an early 7-2 lead and never looked back. The Hawks hit an impressive .381 as a team in the opening frame en route to the 11-point first-set victory.
• The Hawks battled to a 12-11 lead in the second set before the Owls cranked up the pressure and reeled off a 7-3 run. Kills by senior middle Lauren Oxley (Bristow, Va.) and Gladwill would break up the run, but SCSU would score 14 of the last 18 points of the set to lock the match at one set apiece.
• Set four turned into another back-and-forth affair after Saint Anselm thwarted a pair of late leads. Facing four set points, SCSU tied the set at 24 apiece after a Hawk service error, ensuing ace and pair of Saint Anselm attack errors. The teams traded points three straight times, but Southern Connecticut St. would eventually reel off a pair of points to steal the third set 29-27.
• Similar to the previous two sets, SCSU found fuel in the tank late as the Owls broke a 16-16 tie by finishing the match on a 9-2 run.
… vs Post
• Saint Anselm led 21-20 in the first set against Post before the Eagles surged to the opening set win off three Hawk errors.
• After pulling away midway through the second and cruising to a second-set victory, Post turned a 19-18 deficit in the third set by reeling off seven of the next nine points to seal the match sweep.
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
• Saint Anselm lost the battle of attack percentage in both matches, combining for a .148 hit efficiency across both. Southern Connecticut State posted a .199 hit percentage while Post hit a red-hot .314 in the second matchup.
• Saint Anselm was also outblocked in both matches—13-5 by SCSU and 10-7 by Post.
• The Hawks outdug SCSU 76-70, but the Eagles bettered Saint Anselm by outdigging the Hawks 56-42.
NOTES
• Saint Anselm, which knocked off Southern Connecticut St. in last year's Northeast-10 Conference matchup in New Haven, will host the Owls on Saturday, Oct. 24 at Stoutenburgh Gym.
• Post, which was an NCAA Tournament team in 2014, improved to 2-2 overall on the season. The Eagles also evened the all-time series record with Saint Anselm to 5-5 overall.
UP NEXT
• Saint Anselm will continue its weekend tour of the Big Apple with a noontime Sunday matchup at Queens College's Fitzgerald Gymnasium.
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