WEST HAVEN, Conn. – The University of New Haven women's volleyball team (12-3, 4-0) faced three set points in the opening game before rattling off five straight and turning the match in its favor, sweeping the Saint Rose Golden Knights on Thursday night at Charger Gymnasium. Leading the Chargers on the night was junior right side Mallory Nowicki (Grand Rapids, Mich./Northview) who finished with nine kills and a .261 average.
Nowicki was one of eight different Chargers to record a point in the attack with sophomores Camille Garden (Atlanta, Ga./Landmark Christian) and Kali Greathead (Temecula, Calif./Temecula Valley) following her with seven kills apiece. Rounding out the leaders was freshman Jalynn Finnie (Pearland, Texas/Dawson) who closed out the night with a half dozen kills while hitting a team-high .333 attack percentage.
As a team, New Haven finished with a .180 average, collecting 37 total kills. The best hitting coming in the final set where the Chargers finished with a .292 average on 18 combined kills on 48 attempts. Captaining New Haven's offense on the night was senior setter Kristine Rios (Miami, Fla./Coral Reef) who, in a two-setter rotation, finished with 27 assists, while sophomore Angela Chan (Jacksonville, Fla./Bishop Kenny) added six.
Defensively, New Haven's senior libero Brianna Mirmina (Bethany, Conn./Amity Regional) led the Blue and Gold with 13 digs, one of three total players in double figures. Joining her was Greathead and freshman Ruby Fera (Seattle, Wash./Ballard) who each finished with a dozen. The Chargers also combined for five total blocks with Camille Garden (Atlanta, Ga./Landmark Christian) leading the way with three total.
New Haven will close out its week on the road with a pair of matches in upstate New York. The longest NE10 road trip of the season looms as the Chargers will head to Ted Grant Court to meet the Le Moyne Dolphins on Saturday with opening serve set for 3:30 p.m. A date with the Daemen Wildcats will follow less than 24 hours later with the first serve at Lumsden Gymnasium set for 12:00 p.m.