DURHAM, N.H. – The Saint Peter's volleyball team fell to New Hampshire in three sets (12-25, 19-25, 20-25) and New Haven in four sets (25-23, 26-28, 31-33, 18-25) to close out the Holly Young Invitational at Lundholm Gymnasium on Saturday. Despite the results,
Valeria Pagan Munoz made the All-Tournament team for her solid performance over the weekend.
The Peacocks (0-3, 0-0 Metro) fought hard against the Wildcats (2-1, 0-0 America East) and Chargers (1-2, 0-0 NEC), but at the end of the day the other teams produced more in key moments. Saint Peter's ended up on the wrong side of a thriller vs. the Chargers, but the team will learn from it as they return to Jersey City for its home opener.
In the first match of the day,
Addison Baglio led the squad with nine kills, followed by three Peacocks with six apiece. Pagan Munoz and
Ioanna Ververaki each had seven digs in the match, while
Zumra Yavuz recorded a team-high 15 assists.
In match two,
Markela Tsagkopoulou put together an amazing outing, finishing with 18 kills and hitting a team-best .400.
Victoria Pruvost and Pagan Munoz each notched 11 kills, and Pagan Munoz recorded the team's first double-double of the season adding 14 digs.
Karolina T. Rodriguez Mendez also had an efficient match with eight kills and four blocks. She now has the third most kills on the team after the first set of matches with 20 put-aways.
Alondra Fargas and
Meleksu Ozmen were dig-machines as they combined for 53.
HOW IT HAPPENED
VS. NEW HAMPSHIRE
SET ONE: New Hampshire opened the match with a 5-0 run before Pagan Munoz put the Peacocks on the board with a kill. Saint Peter's battled back behind kills from Baglio and Tsagkopoulou, cutting the deficit to 5-8. The Wildcats responded with a strong stretch to take a 16-6 lead, but Saint Peter's continued to fight with kills from Pagan Munoz, Baglio and Pruvost. New Hampshire pulled away late and took the opening set, 25-12.
SET TWO: Saint Peter's stayed within striking distance early, with Baglio and Tsagkopoulou recording kills to keep the deficit at 4-6. Ozmen followed with an ace, and another Baglio kill made it 7-9. New Hampshire eventually built a 16-10 advantage, but the Peacocks responded with kills from Rodriguez Mendez, Ververaki and Baglio to pull within 14-17. The Wildcats answered with three straight points and held on for a 25-19 victory.
SET THREE: The Peacocks battled throughout the third set, with Rodriguez Mendez and Tsagkopoulou helping Saint Peter's stay close early. New Hampshire built a 16-12 lead, but Saint Peter's answered with kills from Baglio and Rodriguez Mendez before a pair of Wildcat errors made it 14-16.
Julia Whaley and Pagan Munoz then teamed up for a block to cut the deficit to 16-18. Pagan Munoz added a kill to make it 17-20, while Yavuz and Rodriguez Mendez kept the Peacocks within 19-21. New Hampshire closed out the set, 25-20, to complete the sweep.
VS. NEW HAVEN
SET ONE: Saint Peter's opened with a 3-0 lead behind an ace from Pagan Munoz. New Haven battled back, but kills from Pruvost, Rodriguez Mendez and Pagan Munoz helped the Peacocks maintain a narrow edge. Baglio and Rodriguez Mendez later pushed Saint Peter's ahead 18-14, while Tsagkopoulou made it 20-16 with a kill. New Haven tied the set at 21-21, but Pagan Munoz answered with a kill before Rodriguez Mendez and Tsagkopoulou helped Saint Peter's reach set point at 24-23. Ozmen finished it with an ace for the 25-23 win.
SET TWO: New Haven took an early 9-3 lead, but Saint Peter's slowly chipped away behind Tsagkopoulou, Pruvost and Rodriguez Mendez. Fargas' ace tied the set at 20-20, and a New Haven error gave the Peacocks a 21-20 advantage. The teams traded points into extra time, with Tsagkopoulou putting Saint Peter's ahead 28-27 with a kill. New Haven responded with two straight points to take the set, 28-26.
SET THREE: Saint Peter's jumped out to an 8-3 lead with kills from Tsagkopoulou and Rodriguez Mendez. New Haven eventually tied it at 13-13, but the Peacocks responded with three straight points to take an 18-14 advantage. The Wildcats rallied again, tying the set at 19-19. Tsagkopoulou gave Saint Peter's a 20-19 lead, while Pagan Munoz later put the Peacocks ahead 29-28. Saint Peter's reached set point at 30-29, but New Haven stayed alive and eventually took the marathon set, 33-31.
SET FOUR: Saint Peter's raced to a 4-0 start behind Pruvost and Tsagkopoulou. Pagan Munoz and Whaley helped the Peacocks maintain a 12-10 advantage before New Haven tied the set at 13-13.
Indira T. Benitez Dumeng's kill put Saint Peter's back ahead 15-14, but the Wildcats took control late with a 7-0 run. Tsagkopoulou added a late kill, but New Haven closed out the set, 25-18, to win the match.
NOTES
Saint Peter's is now 0-7 all-time vs. New Hampshire and 0-1 all-time vs. New Haven…Tsagkopoulou's 18 kills vs. New Haven were the most by a Peacock so far this season…Fargas recorded a team-high 28 assists against New Haven…the 31-33 third set vs. New Haven was the longest set the Peacocks have played since a 40-42 first set at Rider on Oct. 31, 2015.
UP NEXT
The Peacocks return home to Jersey City for their first match at Run Baby Run Arena this season against Delaware State on Wednesday, Sep. 2 at 6 p.m. ET.
