WEST HAVEN, Conn. – After falling behind in the opening set, the New Haven women's volleyball team battled back to secure its second-straight Northeast-10 victory, taking down the visiting Bentley Falcons in four sets (14-25, 25-19, 25-22, 25-10). Leading the Chargers on the night was sophomore middle blocker Camille Garden (Atlanta, Ga./Landmark Christian) who finished with 11 kills and eight blocks.
Garden was one of two players in double figures against the Falcons with junior right side Mallory Nowicki (Grand Rapids, Mich./Northview) finishing with a dozen kills, her second straight and 17th match of the season in double figures. Both Garden and Nowicki finished with a plus-.400 attack average as Garden led the duo with her 11 kills coming on a .429 average. Nowicki closed out the match hitting .409.
Rounding out the Chargers offensive attack was sophomore Kali Greathead (Temecula, Calif./Temecula Valley) who dropped in eight kills while freshman outside hitter Ruby Fera (Seattle, Wash./Ballard) finished with a half dozen while not suffering an error in 18 attempts. As a team, New Haven combined for a .202 hitting average with senior setter Kristine Rios (Miami, Fla./Coral Reef) leading the way in a two-setter rotation with 28 assists. Sophomore Angela Chan (Jacksonville, Fla./Bishop Kenny) added nine assists.
Defensively, senior libero Brianna Mirmina (Bethany, Conn./Amity Regional) led New Haven with 20 digs, one of two players in double figures, joined by Rios who completed a double double with 13 defensive stops.
The Chargers also picked up 13 points on the block, with the 13 put backs a season-high and the sixth time this season in double figures. Leading the way individually was Garden's eight blocks, while freshman middle blocker Jalynn Finnie (Pearland, Texas/Dawson) added five and Nowicki returned three Falcon attempts.
New Haven will head on the road for its next three matches, the final three away from Charger Gymnasium in the regular season, with the first stop coming in Pleasantville, N.Y. for a date with the Pace Setters. First serve in the NE10 battle is slated for 7:00 p.m. from Goldstein Fitness Center.
