MANCHESTER, N.H. –
The Saint Anselm College women's volleyball team rallied for a thrilling five-set victory over Dominican (N.Y.), 3-2, at Stoutenburgh Gymnasium in a non-conference matchup on Saturday.
Saint Anselm 3, Dominican (N.Y.) 2 (17-25, 25-18, 26-28, 30-28, 15-10)
Highlights
- Saint Anselm improves to 4-1 all-time against Dominican, including a 2-0 record at Stoutenburgh Gymnasium.
- Sophomore Addison Shelton recorded a career-high 17 kills while hitting .294 and totaling 21.0 points, three service aces, four digs and two block assists.
- Senior Sam Pila also set a career high with 16 kills, adding 20 digs, two service aces, and 18.0 points.
- Sophomore Etta Rocco set a career high with 14 kills while hitting .300 and contributing 15.0 points, two solo blocks, and four block assists.
- Sophomore Mckenna O'Connell posted a career-high 22 digs while matching her career high with four service aces. O'Connell also led all Hawks, matching her career-high of 48 assists and adding two kills and three block assists.
- Sophomore Veronica Gomez recorded a career-high 13 digs, while Saint Anselm totaled 86 digs as a team in the five-set victory.
How it Happened
SET 1 | Dominican opened the match with a 7-1 run, but Saint Anselm answered with three straight points to pull within 7-4. The Hawks continued to chip away, eventually tying the set at 9-9 after scoring five of six points. Dominican regained control with a 7-1 stretch to move ahead 16-10, then extended the margin to 21-14. Saint Anselm scored three of the next five points, but the Chargers closed the opener with back-to-back points to take the first set, 25-17.
SET 2 | Saint Anselm responded immediately, turning a 4-1 deficit into a 4-4 tie before Dominican briefly regained the lead. The Hawks then took their first lead at 11-10 behind an ace from
Peyton Elward, and after the Chargers pulled even at 14-14, Saint Anselm scored five of the next six points to take a 19-15 advantage. The Hawks continued to build the lead, getting to 23-17 after a kill from Pila, before Rocco recorded back-to-back kills to close the set, 25-18, and even the match.
SET 3 | Saint Anselm took an early 5-2 lead and later led 10-5 after a Shelton service ace, but Dominican answered with a 6-0 run to take an 11-10 edge. The Chargers continued their surge, scoring seven straight points to move from 12-11 down to a 17-12 lead. The Hawks gradually chipped away, but Dominican reached set point at 24-19. Saint Anselm then mounted a remarkable comeback, scoring five consecutive points — including two Pila aces — to tie the set at 24-24. After the Chargers regained a 26-25 lead, Shelton delivered a kill to tie it again before a Burke service error and a Dominican ace ended the frame, 28-26.
SET 4 | The Hawks again established an early advantage, scoring four straight points after Dominican took a 2-1 lead to move ahead 6-2. Saint Anselm maintained a four-point cushion at 10-6, but Dominican responded with a 7-0 run — including four consecutive aces from Haile Comeau — to take a 15-13 lead. The Hawks battled back to tie the set at 15-15 and eventually moved ahead 18-17, but Dominican answered with a 5-1 stretch to take a 22-19 advantage. Saint Anselm fought off set point and tied the frame at 24-24, then traded points with the Chargers deep into extra points. The Hawks held a 26-25 lead, but Dominican scored five of the next seven points to take the set, 30-28, and force a fifth.
SET 5 | Saint Anselm took control immediately in the deciding set, opening with a 3-0 run behind two service aces from
Mckenna O'Connell. Dominican answered with five of the next six points to take a 5-4 lead, but the Hawks responded with a 4-0 run to move ahead 8-5. Saint Anselm continued to pull away, scoring five of the next six points to build a 13-7 advantage, with Shelton contributing back-to-back service aces. Dominican cut the deficit to 14-10, but
Etta Rocco delivered the match-clinching kill to give the Hawks the 15-10 victory and complete the five-set comeback.
Up Next
Saint Anselm women's volleyball (2-0, 0-0 NE10) heads on the road for the first time this season, traveling to Bristol, Tenn., for the King Classic hosted by King University at the Student Center Complex, taking on Winston-Salem State in a non-conference matchup at 12 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 4. The Hawks will play one more match against Newberry College at 6 p.m. later that night.
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