JERSEY CITY, N.J. – The Sacred Heart University women's volleyball team extended its win streak to five matches on Saturday afternoon, sweeping Saint Peter's in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) play in Jersey City, N.J.
With the win, SHU is a half match up on Canisius in the fourth spot in the MAAC standings, as the Golden Griffins play tonight. SHU, who clinched a spot in the league's postseason tournament last weekend, is eyeing that fourth seed to earn a bye in the first round of the event.
Camryn Luginbuhl and
Allison Murray led the way for the Pioneers with 13 kills each. Luginbuhl added nine digs, while Murray had six.
Gaby Zovko finished the match with 26 assists and seven kills.
Miliani Villarreal led all players with 16 digs.
Records:
Sacred Heart: 15-14, 11-6 MAAC
Saint Peter's: 6-18, 4-13 MAAC
Top Performers:
Camryn Luginbuhl: 13 kills, 9 digs
Gaby Zovko: 26 assists, 7 kills
Miliani Villarreal: 16 digs, 6 assists
How It Happened:
The Pioneers were clicking on cylinders to start today's match, as they led 15-7 at the first media timeout. Zovko started things off with back-to-back kills before a block from Luginbuhl and
Molly Newton put the visitors up by eight. The two teams traded runs from there before a 7-1 surge iced a 25-14 win for the Pioneers. Murray ended the set with her third kill of the frame.
The second set started off much closer, as the Peacocks owned a 13-12 advantage through 25 points. The Pioneers took control of the frame by winning 11 of the next 13 points to storm ahead 23-15. Murray again sealed a SHU win with an ace and a kill on back-to-back points, giving them a 25-18 triumph.
Trailing two sets to zero, Saint Peter's started the third ahead 10-9 before a 4-1 Sacred Heart surge gave it a 13-11 lead. The margin hovered around two for a good portion of the frame, with the Pios up 23-21 late. Up by two, SHU secured the win by trading points, as Murray ended her third set in a row with a kill.
Up Next:
Sacred Heart concludes the 2024 regular season at Rider tomorrow at 1 p.m.
