Box Score QUEENS, N.Y. – The Saint Peter's women's volleyball team lost its season-opening contest to St. John's on Labor Day.
Senior Dayana Arrufat-Rondon (Trujillo, Puerto Rico/Carvin School) and junior Lauren Behrens (Frankfort, Ill./Lincoln-Way East) paced the Peacocks with eight kills each in the losing effort.
Karin Palgutova finished with a game-high 16 kills for the Red Storm while Aleksandr Wachowicz chipped in with seven kills.
St. John's (4-0) won all three sets of the match to earn its first home victory of the 2014 season.
In the first set, both teams exchanged points in the early going to knot the game at 2. Following consecutive kills by Palgutova, the Red Storm went on an offensive surge, going on a 21-7 run to take the first set, 25-9.
Second set, the tandem of Arrufat and Behrens helped Saint Peter's (0-1) jump out to an 8-7 lead. St. John's rallied with four consecutive points to take the lead. The Peacocks countered with three straight points to tie the set at 11.
Following a St. John's substitution, the Red Storm went on an 11-1 run to take a 22-12 advantage. The Peacocks made a run at the end, but fell short in the second game, 25-19.
In the decisive third set, each team traded points to tie the match at 3. St. John's ran away with the set, going a 12-3 spurt en route to a 25-11 set victory.
Kristina Baehr (Manassas, Va./Stonewall Jackson) finished with a team-high 19 assists in the contest. Kayla Howell (Monrovia, Calif./Monrovia) recorded six digs in her collegiate debut with the Peacocks.
Saint Peter's returns to action on Nov. 3, when the team travels down the road to Newark, N.J to take on NJIT.
