HONOLULU, Hawai'i – The Sacred Heart University men's volleyball team dropped the final game of its series against No. 3 University of Hawaii Sunday night, 3-0.
 
Records:
Sacred Heart: 6-11, 1-3 NEC
Hawaii: 14-1
 
Top Performers:
Patrick Mucherino: 12 kills (.286), 5 digs, 3 blocks, 1 ace, 14.5 points 
Ryan Benscoter: 5 kills (.500), 5 blocks, 7.5 points
Cade Trujillo: 13 assists, 3 digs, 1 kill
 
How It Happened:
After early back-and-forth play in the first set, the Rainbow Warriors took an eight-point lead after a series of kills and SHU errors. The Pioneers then went on 5-1 run with kills form Petr Beranek, Patrick Mucherino and Ryan Benscoter. The comeback fell short, as the Pios dropped the first set, 25-17.
 
The Pioneers had an early three-point lead in the second, but a pair of kills and an ace was enough for the Rainbow warriors to tie things up. Hawai'i then went on a 9-0 run to secure the lead and the Pioneers fell 25-16.
 
SHU held their own in the third set, responding to the Rainbow Warriors with strong defense at the net. After trailing by five, the Pioneers went on a 6-1 run tying the game up at 17. A pair of aces from Kurt Nusterer propelled the Warriors to take the third set 25-20.
 
Mucherino paced the Pioneers with 12 kills and three blocks. Ryan Benscoter played well at the net tallying five blocks and five kills hitting .500. Hawai'i native, Cade Trujillo started at setter for SHU tallying a career high of 13 assists, three digs and one kill.
 
Up Next:
After an 11-day hiatus, the Pioneers return home on March 15^th at 7:00 p.m. to face Northeast Conference opponent Merrimack on Senior Day.