MANCHESTER, N.H. – The Saint Anselm College volleyball team made it seven-straight victories by hitting .319 as a team on its way to a 25-19, 25-23, 25-21 sweep of visiting Southern Connecticut State University on Saturday at Stoutenburgh Gymnasium.
Box Score
Saint Anselm (9-4, 3-0 NE10) hit over .300 for the second consecutive conference match to deal Southern Connecticut (9-3, 2-1 NE10) its first Northeast-10 Conference loss of the season. Katy Teets led the way with 15 kills, while Madison Sollows and Amanda Williams each had 10 in the victory, which was Saint Anselm's fourth in a row in the series.
Teets' 15 kills put her in double figures for the sixth time this season and Sollows and Williams combined for 20 kills in the middle while hitting .528. Jewel Hays had 42 assists, one shy of the most for a Saint Anselm player in a three-set match since 2002, to surpass 40 assists in a match for the fifth time this season. Defensively, Danielle Isbell recorded a match-high 14 digs and Holly Manchester added two solo blocks and three block assists for the Hawks.
Leanna Jadus was the lone Southern Connecticut player with double-digit kills, finishing with 13 while hitting at a .289 clip. Gabriela Vazquez contributed eight kills and a team-best 11 digs for the Owls, who hit .243. Alexandra Nimz and Alexandria Jurgens combined for 34 assists and 14 digs out of the setter spot.
Southern Connecticut took a 15-11 advantage in the opening set after a 7-1 run, but Saint Anselm controlled the set the rest of the way to take it 25-19. The Hawks won 11 of the next 13 points after trailing by four with Sollows and Teets combining for seven kills after the Owls led 15-11.
Like the first set, Southern Connecticut led by four, 16-12, in the second before a late Saint Anselm rally. The Hawks climbed even at 18-18 before a kill and ace by Vazquez helped the Owls go back on top, 21-18. Saint Anselm erased a 22-19 deficit to tie it at 22-22 and later won the final three points of the set after trailing 23-22. Teets had kills on the final two points of the second set.
Midway through the third set, Saint Anselm used a 7-2 run to take an 18-15 lead, matching an early 9-6 Southern Connecticut advantage for the largest lead of the set to that point. The Owls reclaimed the lead at 21-20 after a 5-1 run but would not win a point the rest of the way as the Hawks won the final five points, including kills by four different players, to close out the win.
Saint Anselm looks to continue its winning streak when Bentley visits Stoutenburgh Gymnasium on Tuesday, Sept. 26 for a 7 p.m. match. The Hawks topped the Falcons in four sets back on Sept. 9 during the Hawks Invitational.
