New London, Conn. – The Albertus Magnus College women's volleyball team lost to in-state rival Mitchell, 3-0, on Monday afternoon in non-conference action inside the Yarnall Center. The Mariners topped the Falcons for the third time this season by scores of 31-29, 25-23 and 25-18.
With the loss, Albertus Magnus moved to 5-16 overall, while Mitchell improved to 4-12 with its second home victory of the season.
In the opening set, neither team led by more than three points and swapped the lead numerous times. Mitchell squandered two sets points and trailed 27-26 following a pair of kills by AMC sophomore middle hitter Ana Gomez (New Haven, Conn.). However, the Falcons couldn't capitalize on the ensuing rally as senior Amanda Garcia kept the Mariners alive with a kill. After Mitchell let two more set points slip away, Emily Stracuzzi finally polished things off with back-to-back kills to capture the set.
The second set was just as close, and with the score tied at 22-22, junior Amanda Rowan and Stracuzzi struck for consecutive kills to put the Mariners on top. Junior outside hitter Amber Cohens (West Haven, Conn.) responded with a kill to cut the deficit back to one, but an Albertus Magnus attack error gave Mitchell its final point and the 2-0 lead.
The Falcons fell behind 21-11 in the final set but ripped off seven straight points to make things interesting. Sophomore defensive specialist Alexa Mollica (Bridgeport, Conn.) started the stretch with a service ace, and the Mariners committed three errors during the span before calling a timeout. Garcia righted the ship out of the break with a pair of kills, and Stracuzzi added an ace on match point to secure victory.
Stracuzzi and Italia Krick each finished with six kills as Mitchell hit .148 as a team. Nicole Caminiti handed out 26 assists to fuel the offense while Stracuzzi and Kaisea Caramante each tallied 12 digs.
Freshman middle hitter Megan Gritz (Milford, Conn.) led Albertus Magnus with nine kills while Gomez chipped in with seven and Cohens added six. Senior setter Ramona Onofrio (East Haven, Conn.) recorded a double-double with 24 assists and 14 digs while sophomore defensive specialist Marielis Muriel (New Haven, Conn.) also contributed 14 digs.
Albertus Magnus closes the regular season on Friday, October 30, with a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) tri-match hosted by Lasell College. The Falcons take on Johnson & Wales at six before facing the host Lasers at eight.