ROCKVILLE CENTRE, N.Y. – In its final tests before opening Northeast-10 play, the University of New Haven volleyball team split a pair of matches on Saturday, falling in four sets to Molloy (25-23, 14-25, 21-25, 16-25) before sweeping Flager (25-13, 25-14, 25-11).
Combined over the two matches, New Haven was led by junior Mallory Nowicki (Grand Rapids, Mich./Northview) who finished with 28 kills, posting double digits in both matches. Among Nowicki's numbers was a career-high 18 kills in the loss to Molloy as she finished that match hitting .485 with a pair of errors in 33 attempts.
Joining her in leading the Chargers on the day was senior setter Kristine Rios (Miami, Fla./Coral Reef) who collected 18 kills, finishing just shy of a triple double in the opening match against Molloy. Rios also posted a team-high 48 assists combined on the day, while finishing among the defensive leaders with 25 digs and leading the team with seven service aces.
Joining Rios in the two-setter rotation was sophomore Angela Chan (Jacksonville, Fla./Bishop Kenny) who finished with 28 assists, while combining for 10 digs across the two matches. Together, the pair led New Haven to a .254 hitting average for the day with 90 total kills across the two matches.
Defensively, three Chargers finished with 20 or more combined digs, led by senior Brianna Mirmina (Bethany, Conn./Amity Regional) who collected 34 total on the day, including leading the efforts in the second match of the day with 15 against Flagler.
MATCH ONE: Molloy 3, New Haven 1
The Chargers opened up the match taking a back-and-forth opening set by a 25-23 decision before dropping three straight sets to surrender the match. Nowicki's career-high 18 kills led the Blue and Gold in the opening match as she was the only player in double figures for New Haven.
Two other players finished just shy of reaching double figures with Rios and sophomore Kali Greathead (Temecula, Calif./Temecula Valley) each finishing with nine hammers. Rios' nine kills came one shy of securing another triple double for the senior setter as she went on to lead the team with 31 assists and contributed 16 digs defensively.
Joining Rios on the defensive end were two additional Chargers in double figures, led by Greathead who returned a team-best 21 attempts from Molloy, her fourth career match with 20 or more digs. Rounding out the leaders was the libero, Mirmina, who finished with 19 digs.
MATCH TWO: New Haven 3, Flagler 0
New Haven never found trouble as they cruised to a three-set victory over its opponent from the South. All combined, New Haven finished the match hitting a season-high .379, not hitting below .333 for a single set. Once again, Nowicki would finish as a leading hitter for the Chargers, this time around tied with freshman Sydney Strasner (Corona, Calif./Santiago), each with 10 kills.
The pair both hit plus-.500 for the match with Nowicki posting a team-best .600, suffering just one error in 15 attempts. Strasner finished errorless for the match in 17 total swings. Rios once again finished one kill shy of double figures, while leading the two-setter rotation with 17 assists. Chan chipped in with 15 helpers.
Defensively, Mirmina was the lone Charger in double figures with 15 digs, while Rios finished one shy of double figures with nine and Greathead followed her with eight. Rios also putting on a service showcase for New Haven, finishing with seven aces against Flagler.
UP NEXT
New Haven will kick off a 14-match Northeast-10 schedule when they next take the court at Assumption on Tuesday night. First serve from the Greyhounds Laska Gymnasium is slated for 7:00 p.m.
