WEST HAVEN, Conn. – In a rematch of last season's East Region Championship, the University of New Haven volleyball team earned its fourth straight win over the American International Yellow Jackets with a four-set victory (18-25, 25-20, 25-13, 28-26). With the win, New Haven improved to 10-3 on the season and remains undefeated early in the Northeast-10 conference schedule at 2-0.
Leading the Blue and Gold on the night was sophomore Camille Garden (Atlanta, Ga./Landmark Christian) who closed out the night with a .632 attack percentage, drilling 13 kills, which tied her career-high, with a single error in 19 total attempts. Garden was one of three Chargers in double figures, followed by classmate Kali Greathead (Temecula, Calif./Temecula Valley) and junior Mallory Nowicki (Grand Rapids, Mich./Northview) who finished with 12 and 11 kills, respectively.
Senior setter Kristine Rios (Miami, Fla./Coral Reef) led New Haven's offensive efforts as one of two setters in a six-two rotation. The experience playmaker closed out the night with a team-high 29 assists while finishing as one of the defensive leaders with 14 digs. Sophomore Angela Chan (Jacksonville, Fla./Bishop Kenny) completed the setter rotation as she finished with 13 kills and also completed a double double with 11 digs.
The pair helped lead the Chargers a .218 attack percentage with a combined 51 kills across the four sets. New Haven's best hitting came in the middle two sets were where they finished with a plus-.300 attack average as a team, finishing with 14 kills each in the second and third games.
Defensively, Chan and Rios were part of four leaders in double figures with senior libero Brianna Mirmina (Bethany, Conn./Amity Regional) leading all players in the match with a season-high 25 digs. Rounding out the defensive leaders was senior Lindsey Kim (Rye Brook, N.Y./Blind Brook) who returned 10 of the Yellow Jackets attempts. The Chargers also combined for eight total blocks, led by Rios and freshman Jalynn Finnie (Pearland, Texas/Dawson) who each closed out the night with four blocks.
New Haven also excelled on the serve where they finished with nine service aces, while limiting AIC to just four. Leading the way for the Chargers was Mirmina with four, while four other players all finished with at least one ace.
The home stand will continue for the Blue and Gold when they welcome crosstown rival Southern Connecticut State University for a rematch of the 2017 NE10 Championship. Opening serve against the Owls is slated for 7:00 p.m. Fans unable to attend can follow the action online with Live Stats and Live Video.
