WEST HAVEN, Conn. – The University of New Haven women's volleyball team won its second consecutive Northeast-10 Championship with a 3-2 win over Merrimack on Saturday at Charger Gymnasium. Amber Cannady (Yonkers, N.Y./Charles E. Gorton) was named the Championship's Most Outstanding Player after recording 20 kills and nine blocks in tonight's match.
 
New Haven, which improves to 26-4 overall, is the first team to win back-to-back Northeast-10 Championships since Bryant won three straight from 2003-05. The Chargers have won four NE-10 crowns in six seasons as a member of the conference. Merrimack, which reached the Championship Round as the seventh-seeded team, falls to 17-15.
 
The Chargers took the match by set scores of 25-20, 19-25, 25-23, 28-26 and 15-10.
 
New Haven has clinched the NE-10's automatic bid to the NCAA Division II East Region Championship and will learn its next postseason destination and opponent during the Selection Show on Monday, Nov. 25 at 7:30 p.m. EST on NCAA.com. The Chargers were ranked No. 4 in the most recent rankings released by the NCAA.
 
For the Championship, Cannady averaged 4.00 kills per set with a .398 hitting percentage en route to Most Outstanding Player honors. The Northeast-10 Player of the Year topped all players to reach the semifinals and ranked second overall with 1.33 blocks per frame in 12 sets of action. Kristen Lee (Colorado Springs, Colo./Liberty) joined Cannady on the Northeast-10 All-Championship Team with 14 kills and 10 digs tonight and 2.09 kills and 2.55 digs per set in the postseason overall.
 
Also reaching double-digit kills tonight were Ashley Dalton (Helena, Mont./Capital / Northern Arizona University) and Kristy Atufunwa (Denver, Colo./Denver East) with 11 finishers apiece. Margo Meteyer (Madison, Wis./Madison West) added eight kills and Meghan Kennelly (Detroit, Mich./Eisenhower) had one. Kaulana Ane (Paia, Hawai'i/Kamehameha) had double-double from the setter spot with 56 assists and 14 digs while running New Haven to a .216 hitting percentage.
 
Defensively, Kea-Marie Olaso (Kailua, Hawai'i/Le Jardin Academy) led all players with 20 digs. In doing so, she claimed the program's single-season record with 575 digs this fall. The Second Team All-Northeast-10 libero surpasses the 569 digs recorded by Zuleyka Figueroa in 2002. Cannady's nine blocks headed the effort at the net, while Dalton got a piece of seven of the Chargers' 16 total blocks.
 
Stephanie Sheehan had 16 kills, 14 digs and five service aces for the Warriors. Tara Stuhr posted 48 assists and 13 digs, while Madison Burke led the back row with 16 digs. Merrimack hit .170 and had seven total blocks. Jackie Jones, who represented the Warriors on the All-Championship Team, had 15 kills while hitting .306 this evening.
 
After splitting the first two sets, the Chargers raced out to an 11-6 lead in the pivotal third frame. The Warriors would climb to within one point on several occasions, including a 23-22 mark. A kill by Atufunwa brought it to set point and, after Merrimack won one rally, Dalton sent home the finisher to stake New Haven to a 2-1 lead.
 
Behind strong service from Sheehan, the Warriors grabbed a 6-1 advance in the fourth set. The margin extended to 10-3, and Merrimack held the Chargers off to a set-point opportunity at 24-18. In the ensuing stretch of action, New Haven got a Meteyer kill and a pair of Meteyer/Cannady blocks en route to fighting off six consecutive set points and tying the frame at 24-24. Another Meteyer finisher brought the match to Championship Point, but Merrimack would win that rally and another trailing 26-25. The Warriors then rattled off back-to-back points to extend their season with a 28-26 decision to push the Northeast-10 Championship to a deciding fifth set.
 
The Chargers ran off the first two points and never trailed in set five, starting the frame on a 4-1 run. Merrimack twice pulled to within one point, but New Haven responded on both occasions and streaked to 14-9 decision. The Warriors again fought off Championship Point, but the Chargers won the ensuing rally – capped by a Sheehan attack error – to win their second straight NE-10 crown with a 15-10 set-five victory.
 
Information on the 2013 NCAA Division II East Region Championship will be available on NewHavenChargers.com as it is announced. The Chargers won the 12th regional title in program history last fall.