WEST HAVEN, Conn. – The New Haven women's volleyball team battled end to end in the 2021 edition of the Elm City Rivalry but fell in five sets to Southern Connecticut State Thursday night. With the loss the Blue and Gold fall to 18-7 overall, and 8-2 in Northeast-10 conference play, sitting third in the standings with three matches left in the regular season, just one game off the top spot.

The Chargers and the Owls went at each other right out of the gates, with neither side building more than a three-point advantage throughout. Freshman outside Macy Brown (Cadillac, Mich./Cadillac) led the New Haven offense in the set, powering five kills to lead a group of six players who contributed to the attack, helping the home side take the opener 25-23.

The Blue and Gold gained the advantage early in set two, extending an 8-2 lead, forcing a Southern Connecticut timeout. Out of the stoppage the Owls cut into the deficit by two before New Haven rattled off five of the next seven to push the lead to seven. The New Haven offense hammered 16 kills on just two errors to hit .424 for the set, the highest output of the contest. They would go on to score 10 of the final 15 points, taking the set 25-15 and a 2-0 advantage in the match.

Southern Connecticut countered in the third set by scoring eight of the first 11 points, before New Haven was able to rally back to cut the deficit to one at 14-13. A three-point run by the Blue and Gold brought the two sides back level at 17, immediately countered by the Owls, who scored five of the next seven points, to extend the advantage to 22-19. The Chargers drew even once again at 22-22, but the Southern offense retaliated with three of the last four points to take the set 25-23.

A back and forth battle continued in set four, with Southern Connecticut holding a slim lead at 9-8 early on. The Owls would go on to score eight of the next nine points, before the Chargers countered with a 7-3 extended run to cut the deficit to four. That would be the difference in the set as well, as the two sides evenly exchanged the final ten points to give Southern Connecticut a 25-21 win, forcing a decisive fifth set.

Set five saw the Owls break out to an early lead once again, extending a 5-2 advantage, before the Chargers countered with six of the next eight to take an 8-7 lead. Southern Connecticut would take control of the match from there, extending an 11-10 lead before rattling off the final four points to take the match 3-2.

As a team the New Haven offense scattered 65 kills across the five sets on 182 total attempts for a .253 hitting percentage, with all but seven of those hammers coming off an assist, highlighted by freshman setter Sophia Leon-Tabor (Fort Myers, Fla./Fort Myers) who tossed out 58. Senior right-side Jessica Akiona (Kapolei, Hawaii/La Pietra- Hawaii School for Girls) led the attack with 19 kills in the match, followed by senior outside Emily Barry (Freeport, N.Y./Sacred Heart Academy) with 18 and Brown with 14. A trio of players contributed two service aces apiece, with Barry, Brown and junior defensive specialist Julia Guarniere (Milford, N.H./Milford) making up that group.

Overall, the Blue and Gold collected 88 digs in the match, with Akiona also leading the defensive efforts with 20 digs to complete a double-double. Sophomore libero Rilee Jessee (Edinburgh, Ind,/Columbus East) finished just behind her with 19, followed by Barry with 18, and a pair of players who collected 12, while at the tape, Barry, and sophomore middle Emily Smith (Chesterfield, Mich./Anchor Bay) each tallied one solo block.