BOX SCORE 1 | BOX SCORE 2 SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – The University of New Haven women's volleyball team posted a pair of victories on the first day of the AIC Yellow Jacket Invitational. The Chargers swept Nyack in the afternoon and followed up with a 3-1 win over Wilmington.
 
New Haven improves to 4-4 after the wins over two Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference squads. The Chargers have now won four straight matches overall to move to 4-0 against the East Region this fall.
 
Margo Meteyer (Madison, Wis./Madison West) led the Chargers offensively with 3.67 kills per set on the day, fueled by a career-high 19 kills against Wilmington. Meteyer had a double-double in the win over the Wildcats, adding a career-best 20 digs in the match. Kaulana Ane (Paia, Hawai'i/Kamehameha) also had a double-double in the nightcap with 51 assists and 18 digs.
 
Kea-Marie Olaso (Kailua, Hawai'i/Le Jardin Academy) recorded a career-high 42 digs against Wilmington, leading the Chargers on the day with 7.14 digs per set. At the net, Kristy Atufunwa (Denver, Colo./Denver East) had a hand in seven New Haven blocks to go along with her 3.00 kills per frame.
 
New Haven 3, Nyack 0 (25-16, 25-18, 25-12)
In the day's opening match, the Chargers got kills from 10 different student-athletes en route to a straight-set victory. #Kristen Lee had a team-leading 10 kills on .409 hitting (10-1-22) as New Haven collectively swung at a blistering .337 rate (33-5-83).
 
Lexis Peterson (Windsor, N.Y./Windsor Central) made an impact in her collegiate debut with four kills, two digs and two blocks. Meteyer, Ane, Alex Bussey (Atlanta, Ga./Pace Academy), Meghan Kennelly (Detroit, Mich./Eisenhower) and Meagan Anderson (Palm Springs, Calif./Palm Springs) each added three kills. Hayley Wilson (Denver, Colo./Overland) contributed two finishers, and Atufunwa and Damianis Eusebio (Miramar, Fla./University School) had one apiece. Ane ran the offense to the tune of 21 assists.
 
Defensively, Kennelly recorded 10 digs, with Olaso posting eight digs in addition to three service aces. New Haven amassed four team blocks, guided by two assists apiece from Kennelly and Peterson.
 
Nyack (0-10) got 10 kills from Alli Beezer and six by Alexus Winters. Jillian Smith doled out 17 assists from the setter spot and completed a double-double with a team-high 10 digs.
 
New Haven 3, Wilmington 1 (25-19, 24-26, 25-19, 25-15)
The second match of day one saw New Haven challenge Wilmington – the reigning regular season champions of the CACC South. Meteyer's double-double of 19 kills and 20 digs fueled the effort as the Blue and Gold dispatched the Wildcats in four sets.
 
Atufunwa had 14 kills with a .345 hitting percentage (14-4-29), and Wilson set a new career standard with 12 kills. Lee picked up eight finishers, and Ane added four kills to go along with her double-double consisting of 51 assists and 18 digs. Rounding out the offense were Bussey and Kennelly with three kills each and a pair of finishers for Olaso.
 
Olaso's 42 digs topped her previous career best of 37 digs set in a five-set win at Bentley last fall. Annika Hacker (Bayreuth, Germany/Littleton (Colo.)) added 15 digs for the Chargers.
 
Bussey had five solo blocks and six total send-backs to fuel New Haven's cumulative 11-block effort. Atufunwa got a piece of five blocks, and Lee was a part of two rejections.
 
Wilmington (3-8) got 14 kills from Allison Briley, 24 assists out of Alex Siolos and 34 digs from Shelby Henderson.
 
The Chargers conclude action in Springfield tomorrow with two non-conference matches against Northeast-10 Conference foes. New Haven meets Saint Rose at 5 p.m. and challenges tournament host American International at 7 p.m.
 
New Haven will remain on the road and resume the NE-10 slate this Thursday, Sept. 25 at Assumption before returning to Charger Gymnasium to host perennial region power Dowling next Saturday, Sept. 27.