TAMPA, Fla. – The University of New Haven volleyball team closed out its southern trip on Saturday with a pair of four set losses against Western Washington and Florida Southern. Leading the Chargers on the day was senior Carol Martins who finished with 19 kills combined over the two matches.
Martins closed out the opening match of the day against Western Washington with her first double double of the season as she finished with 11 kills and 10 digs. Her 11 kills came thanks to a .172 attack percentage. Following her in lead the Chargers offense was sophomore Mallory Nowicki (Grand Rapids, Mich./Northview) and freshman Kali Greathead (Temecula, Calif./Temecula Valley) who each chipped in six kills.
Freshman setter Angela Chan (Jacksonville, Fla./Bishop Kenny) led the Chargers for the first time in her collegiate career, completing the opening match with 15 assists, followed by junior Kristine Rios (Miami, Fla./Coral Reef) who added 13. Rios also joined Martins with a double double as she added 10 digs as well.
Leading the defense overall was junior Brianna Mirmina (Bethany, Conn./Amity Regional) who finished with 21 digs, while Greathead added 13. As a team, New Haven's best hitting came in the second set where they combined for 11 kills in 37 attempts with four errors for a .189 attack percentage.
The Blue and Gold also combined for 11 total blocks, led by senior Alex Bussey (Atlanta, Ga./Pace Academy) who finished with six. She was followed by senior Lexis Peterson (Windsor, N.Y./Windsor Central) (5), Nowicki (4) and freshman Camille Garden (Atlanta, Ga./Landmark Christian) who also finished with four.
In the second match, New Haven was led by Martins and Greathead who each finished with eight kills. Among the pair, Greathead led the way with a .269 attack percentage with her eight kills coming on 26 attempts with one error. Leading the Chargers hitting against Florida Southern was Peterson who finished with seven kills and a pair of errors in 12 total attempts. Bussey also hit effectively with seven kills and two errors in 14 attempts for a .357 average. Rounding out the leading hitters was Nowicki who finished with six.
Captaining the Chargers offense in the second match was Rios who finished with 20 assists, while Chan added 14. Mirmina again spearheaded the New Haven defense as she collected 32 digs, while Chan added 15 and Rios 13. The Blue and Gold also added five blocks against Florida Southern, led once again by Bussey who finished with three.
New Haven will return to the Northeast for their next four matches, which all come in Lakewood, N.J. as the Chargers will take part in the Georgian Court Invitational on September 8-9. Action will tip off for the Chargers on Friday, September 8 at 1:00 p.m. against East Stroudsburg.
