NEW HAVEN, Conn. - The Albertus Magnus College women's volleyball team split a pair of matches to open up their 2023 season Saturday afternoon, defeating Old Westbury in a thrilling five set match, 3-2 before losing its second match to Salem State, 3-1.
THE BASICS
MATCH 1: Albertus Magnus 3, Old Westbury, 2
MATCH 2: Salem State 3, Albertus Magnus 1
MATCH 1 VS. Old Westbury
1st Set: Albertus Magnus 25, Old Westbury 22
2nd Set: Old Westbury 25, Albertus Magnus 19
3rd Set: Old Westbury 25, Albertus Magnus 21
4th Set: Albertus Magnus 25, Old Westbury 19
5th Set: Albertus Magnus 15, Old Westbury 11
HIGHLIGHTS
Old Westbury led 17-16 in set one before the Falcons ran off six straight points, including kills by Amanda Zdru, Nyana Richards, Colleen Edwards (Clinton, Conn.) and Shalese Gordon (Bridgeport, Conn.) to take a 22-17 lead in the set enroute to a 1-0 match lead.
The Panthers led 17-9 in set two, but the Falcons closed the gap to 18-16. However, Old Westbury scored the next four points and eventually tied the match at 1-1. The Panthers had a .286 attack percentage in the set.
In set three, no team led by more than two points through the frame until the Panthers took a 22-21 lead and ran off the final three points to take a 2-1 match lead.
The Falcons took control of set four, never trailing and taking as much as a ten-point lead at 20-10. The Panthers crept back within six points, but never got any closer. Eight of the Falcons points during the set came on kills.
In the final set, the teams split the first 16 points, but the Falcons scored seven of the last ten points, ending on a kill by Elizabeth Lynch (Stratford, Conn.) to give them their first win of the season.
TEAM LEADERS
Albertus
Majo Pelaez (Armenia, Colombia) - 8 kills
Rachael Pellegrini (Clinton, Conn.) - 18 assists
Shalese Gordon - 5 aces
Amanda Zdru (Stratford, Conn.) - 16 digs
Nathalie Wallace (Rocky Hill, Conn.) - 4 blocks
Old Westbury
Stephanie Maser - 11 kills
Hollyanne Hansen - 30 assists
Geanelle Sam, Jonangeliz Alvarez - 3 aces
Stephanie Maser - 15 digs
Three tied with 1 block
NOTEWORTHY
Led by Gordon, the Falcons had 16 service aces to just 14 from Old Westbury.
The four blocks for Wallace tied a career-high, a feat she achieved against MCLA in 2022.
The Falcons remained undefeated against Old Westbury all-time, and now lead the series, 3-0.
It is the first time since 2018 the Falcons won their opening game of the season.
MATCH 2 VS. Salem State
1st set: Salem State 25, Albertus Magnus 15
2nd set: Albertus Magnus 25, Salem State 21
3rd set: Salem State 25, Albertus Magnus 20
4th set: Salem State 25, Albertus Magnus 16
HIGHLIGHTS
- The teams were knotted up at 10-10 in the first set, but the Vikings went on a 10-1 run to cruise to a 1-0 match lead.
- Albertus never trailed again after dropping the first point in set two, taking a 15-6 lead as Josimar Aviles (Hatillo, Puerto Rico) had four aces during the set. Salem State closed the gap at 22-18, but a kill from Edwards ended the set and tied the match up.
- In set three, the teams matched each other with eight kills apiece, but the Vikings led by as much as seven in the set to take a 2-1 match lead.
- The fourth and final set saw Salem State score the first four points before the Falcons rallied to take an 11-7 lead, thanks in large part to Gordon who had two kills during the stretch. From there, the Vikings scored the next eight points, taking a 15-11 lead and the Falcons would get no closer than two the rest of the way.
TEAM LEADERS
Albertus
Colleen Edwards - 7 kills
Rachael Pellegrini - 14 assists
Joismar Aviles - 5 aces
Amanda Zdru - 25 digs
Elizabeth Lynch - 2 blocks
Salem State
Abigail O'Connor - 15 kills
Eva Haralabatos - 20 assists
Eva Haralabatos - 6 aces
Kailey Roche - 19 digs
Abigail O'Connor - 4 blocks
NOTEWORTHY
- Dating back to last season, Amanda Zdru had double-digit digs in seven of her last eight games.
- The Vikings now hold a 3-0 lead over Albertus all-time.
UP NEXT
The Falcons have their first road match of the season on September 7, when they take on Purchase at 7 p.m.
