RINDGE, N.H. – The University of New Haven volleyball team came out hitting in its Northeast-10 Championship quarterfinal taking down the second seeded Franklin Pierce Ravens in four sets (25-19, 26-24, 23-25, 25-20) on Tuesday night.

Leading the Chargers was graduate middle hitter Micki Impellizeri (Seaford, N.Y./St. Anthony's) who finished with a match-best 16 kills and sported a .312 hitting average. Joining her in double figures was junior outside hitter Meghan Kennelly (Detroit, Mich./Eisenhower) who finished with 12 kills, while Alex Bussey (Atlanta, Ga./Pace Academy) and Kristine Rios (Miami, Fla./Coral Reef) joined in the hitting success with seven and six kills respectively. Rios, who led the Chargers with 40 assists, finished with a team-high .385 hitting average with one error in 13 attempts.

Defensively, freshman libero Brianna Mirmina (Bethany, Conn./Amity Regional) led New Haven with 26 digs while Rios joined in the lead with 19. As a team, New Haven finished with 10 blocks, led by Alex Bussey (Atlanta, Ga./Pace Academy) who closed out the match with six.

FIRST SET HIGHLIGHTS

·           The turning point for the Chargers came on a four-point rally that provided an 8-6 lead, one they wouldn't relinquish. Highlighting the rally was kills from Meghan Kennelly (Detroit, Mich./Eisenhower) and Alex Bussey (Atlanta, Ga./Pace Academy), while Bussey also joined Damianis Eusebio (Miramar, Fla./University School) on a block. A service ace for freshman setter Kristine Rios (Miami, Fla./Coral Reef) capped off the run.

·           Franklin Pierce was forced to call its first timeout of the set following back-to-back aces from Lindsey Kim (Rye Brook, N.Y./Blind Brook) that resulted in a 14-10 lead for the Blue and Gold.

·           A deep kill from Kennelly gave UNH a 21-16 lead and forced the Ravens to use their final timeout. Coming out of that break freshman libero Brianna Mirmina (Bethany, Conn./Amity Regional) drilled another Chargers service ace.

·           Leading the Chargers in the opening set was Bussey who finished with three kills and a .333 hitting average while also adding a pair of blocks. Micki Impellizeri (Seaford, N.Y./St. Anthony's) was tied for the set lead with four kills, while Kennelly also added three.

SECOND SET HIGHLIGHTS

·           New Haven erased an early 6-3 deficit by taking its first lead of the match following a four point rally that began with a kill from Micki Impellizeri (Seaford, N.Y./St. Anthony's). After an ace from Caprisha Richards (St. Thomas, Virgin Islands/Antilles School), kills from Meghan Kennelly (Detroit, Mich./Eisenhower) and Kristine Rios (Miami, Fla./Coral Reef) capped off the rally and provided the lead change.

·           Facing set point, the Chargers rallied to score five straight points and earn a 2-0 lead in the match. Kristen Lee (Colorado Springs, Colo./Liberty) began the rally with a kill followed by a hitting error on the Ravens. A kill from Kennelly forced Franklin Pierce to call its final timeout. Coming out of the break, the Ravens would suffer another hitting error which was followed by blocks from Rios and Micki Impellizeri (Seaford, N.Y./St. Anthony's), capping off the comeback rally.

·           Rios led the Chargers in the second set, securing four kills without hitting an error in six attempts for a .667 average. Lee was tied with Franklin Pierce's Katie Leidhold for a set high with five kills, while Lee closed out the set with a .308 hitting average.

THIRD SET HIGHLIGHTS

·           The Chargers used a four point rally to open up a five-point lead 11-6. Meghan Kennelly (Detroit, Mich./Eisenhower) began the rally with a kill which was followed by an ace from Kristine Rios (Miami, Fla./Coral Reef). A hitting error on the Ravens forced Franklin Pierce to call for timeout but another hitting error out of the break extended the Chargers lead to five.

·           After the Ravens tied the set at one, New Haven rallied once again taking four straight points, all starting with a block from Micki Impellizeri (Seaford, N.Y./St. Anthony's) and Kristen Lee (Colorado Springs, Colo./Liberty). That block was followed by an ace from Lindsey Kim (Rye Brook, N.Y./Blind Brook) before a pair of errors on the Ravens resulted in a four point, 17-13, lead and a Franklin Pierce timeout.

·           Leading New Haven in the third set was Micki Impellizeri (Seaford, N.Y./St. Anthony's) who finished with a set-high six kills and one error for a .500 hitting average.

FOURTH SET HIGHLIGHTS

·           New Haven saw its first lead come thanks to a four point rally that began with back-to-back kills from Micki Impellizeri (Seaford, N.Y./St. Anthony's) and concluded with an ace from Meghan Kennelly (Detroit, Mich./Eisenhower).

·           The Chargers would use another four point rally to break a 14-14 deadlock, opening up the run with a kill from Alex Bussey (Atlanta, Ga./Pace Academy). After a block from Kennelly and Bussey, Damianis Eusebio (Miramar, Fla./University School) closed out the rally with a  kill.

·           The turning point came as the Ravens rallied to tie the set at 20-20 with New Haven coming out of its own timeout with a big time kill from Kennelly. The Chargers would never allow the Ravens to score again with another kill from Kennelly and two more from Impellizeri before an error on Franklin Pierce ended the match.

·           Kennelly and Impellizeri each led the Chargers in the final set with four kills apiece, while Impellizeri led the duo with a .333 hitting percentage. Bussey's two kills in the final set came on her only two attempts as she finished with a perfect average.

UP NEXT
The Chargers advance to the Northeast-10 Championship semifinals with a date against sixth seeded American International on tap for Friday evening. Time of the match remains to be determined with the quarterfinals and championship to be held on the home court of top seeded Adelphi.