GARDEN CITY, N.Y. – The University of New Haven women's volleyball team posted a five-set victory over sixth seeded American International to advance to its fifth Northeast-10 championship game. Leading the Chargers to the heart stopping victory was junior Meghan Kennelly (Detroit, Mich./Eisenhower) who finished with 13 kills, while senior Kristen Lee (Colorado Springs, Colo./Liberty) added 11.

The Chargers opened the match winning the first two sets by scores of 25-23 and 25-18 before AIC forced a fifth, and deciding, set with 25-14 and 25-21 decisions in set three and four. The fifth set would be pushed to seven match points before it was decided thanks to a kill from Kennelly off a feed from freshman setter Kristine Rios. Kennelly joined Micki Impellizeri (Seaford, N.Y./St. Anthony's) on a block on the previous point which set up the first and only match point for the Blue and Gold.

New Haven finished the match hitting .130 as a team with 48 kills in 177 total attempts. Leading the individual hitting efforts was Alex Bussey (Atlanta, Ga./Pace Academy) who finished with a .312 hitting average on seven kills and two errors in 16 swings. Rios closed out the match with 39 assists, adding four kills.

Defensively, five New Haven players finished with double figure digs, led by Kennelly who finished with 19, her second-straight and 16th double double of the season. Joining her in leading the defensive efforts was Rios, Lee and Brianna Mirmina (Bethany, Conn./Amity Regional) who finished with 14 digs and Lindsey Kim (Rye Brook, N.Y./Blind Brook) who chipped in 10. New Haven combined for 13 total blocks, one shy of the season high. Leading the way was Impellizeri who finished with nine, while Rios and Bussey were a part of four blocks each.  

FIRST SET HIGHLIGHTS

·           Facing a four point deficit, the Chargers began a rally that resulted in a three point advantage. The first part of the run consisted of four-straight points beginning with a kill from Micki Impellizeri (Seaford, N.Y./St. Anthony's). Caprisha Richards (St. Thomas, Virgin Islands/Antilles School) capped off the run with the Chargers first ace of the day. Following a draw at 10, the Chargers took advantage of back-to-back hitting errors on the Yellow Jackets to take a 12-10 lead before a kill from Damianis Eusebio (Miramar, Fla./University School) and an ace from Kristen Lee (Colorado Springs, Colo./Liberty) pushed the UNH lead to 14-11, its largest to that point.

·           The turning point for New Haven came as they faced a 19-21 deficit and responded with back-to-back kills from Lee and Meghan Kennelly (Detroit, Mich./Eisenhower) knotting the game at 12. Following an AIC point, Kennelly went back-to-back herself to give the Blue and Gold a 23-22 lead.

·           Facing a 23-23 stalemate, New Haven closed out the set with a kill from Kennelly and an ace from Lee taking the early match lead.

·           Kennelly would lead UNH in the opening set, finishing with five kills and a .364 hitting, while adding four digs.

SECOND SET HIGHLIGHTS

·           New Haven, who never trailed in the second set, jumped out to an early 4-1 advantage. Following an opening set kill from Micki Impellizeri (Seaford, N.Y./St. Anthony's), the Chargers responded to a 1-1 draw with kills from Meghan Kennelly (Detroit, Mich./Eisenhower) and Brianna Mirmina (Bethany, Conn./Amity Regional) followed by blocks from Kristine Rios (Miami, Fla./Coral Reef) and Impellizeri, which provided a 4-1 advantage.

·           The Chargers largest lead came at 11-5 thanks to back-to-back errors on the Yellow Jackets and a kill from Kristen Lee (Colorado Springs, Colo./Liberty). Two points later, the Chargers would match that lead thanks to a kill from Alex Bussey (Atlanta, Ga./Pace Academy).

·           The turning point for New Haven came as they had a slim 18-17 lead and responded with a kill from Alex Bussey (Atlanta, Ga./Pace Academy) followed by a service ace from Caprisha Richards (St. Thomas, Virgin Islands/Antilles School). Following an AIC point, the Chargers would score the final five points, starting out with a kill from Impellizeri and capped off with an ace from Lindey Kim.

THIRD SET HIGHLIGHTS

·           New Haven responded to an early three point deficit by scoring three-straight to knot the set at five. A tip over from Kristine Rios (Miami, Fla./Coral Reef) started the rally with Alex Bussey (Atlanta, Ga./Pace Academy) following with a kill and Kristen Lee (Colorado Springs, Colo./Liberty) capping it off with a put down.

·           The turning points came as the Chargers began to chip away at the Yellow Jackets lead with back-to-back errors on AIC pulling UNH within three, 12-15. Two points later, following a kill from Impellizeri, the Yellow Jackets pulled away thanks to back-to-back aces, forcing a fourth set.

FOURTH SET HIGHLIGHTS

·           Facing a 9-6 deficit, New Haven rallied to knot the score at nine thanks to three-straight kills from Meghan Kennelly (Detroit, Mich./Eisenhower), Micki Impellizeri (Seaford, N.Y./St. Anthony's) and Kristen lee with the latter forcing the Yellow Jackets to call a timeout.

·           The turning point came following a Micki Impellizeri (Seaford, N.Y./St. Anthony's) kill that pulled the Blue and Gold within three, 19-22. AIC responded with back-to-back kills, the second of which glazed off of a Charger blocker, setting the Yellow Jackets up with set point.

FIFTH SET HIGHLIGHTS

·           The first turning point of the deciding set came at a 6-6 deadlock with a tip over kill from freshman setter Kristine Rios (Miami, Fla./Coral Reef) putting energy into the Chargers. Alex Bussey (Atlanta, Ga./Pace Academy) followed that with a kill as the teams switched sides.

·           The Chargers largest lead came on a kill from Meghan Kennelly (Detroit, Mich./Eisenhower), which followed an attacking error on the Yellow Jackets. Kennelly's kill came courtesy of an assist from Damianis Eusebio (Miramar, Fla./University School), resulting in an 11-8 lead. Blocks from Eusebio and Alex Bussey (Atlanta, Ga./Pace Academy) on an extended rally would result in a matching lead at 12-9.

·           New Haven faced six match point scenarios, picking up the point on each of those instances. Included was a pair of kills by Lee and Kennelly and blocks from Bussey, Rios, Kennelly and Impellizeri.

·           New Haven would convert its first match point opportunity, which came thanks to a block on the right side from Impellizeri and Kennelly. The match point came courtesy of a kill from Kennelly which provided a 21-19 final

UP NEXT
The Chargers will play for their fifth Northeast-10 Championship on Saturday at 5:00 p.m. when they meet the top seeded Adelphi Panthers. Fans can follow the action with live video and live stat links on NewHavenChargers.com.