BOX SCORE
Durham, N.H. – In its first match in the second round of league play, the Hawks fell to New Hampshire in five-sets (23-25, 25-14, 25-20, 24-26, 15-13) on Friday night in Durham. The Hawks were led by junior Kami Nethersole who finished with a match-high 22 kills. With the loss, Hartford falls to 11-13 overall and 2-5 in conference play, while New Hampshire improves to 7-16, 6-1 in the league.
In the first set, the Hawks trailed late in the match by two points, 23-21, before rattling off four-straight points to end the match and take the early lead. New Hampshire then took sets two and three before the Hawks rallied in the fourth set to force the deciding game. In the fourth set, the teams played it close until a six-point run gave the Hawks a 16-12 lead. The Hawks would see that lead grow to as much as five before the Wildcats tied things at 24. Hartford would score the final two points heading into decisive set.
In the final set, the Wildcats jumped out to an early 4-1 lead before a six-point run for the Hawks gave them a 7-5 advantage. The teams would then tie the score on five-straight points, the final 12-12, before the Wildcats took a 14-12 advantage, one they would not look back from. The Hawks, looking to make another late run were thwarted by a match-point kill from Lauren Laquerre, who was one of four Wildcats to finish in double figures with 17.
Joining Nethersole in leading the Hawks was Michelle Cordell with 14 kills and Sareeta Nethersole with 11, rounding out the double figure performers. Lindsay Anderson finished one shy of her seventh double figure match with nine kills, while Taylor McCreery added seven for the Hawks.
As a team, Hartford finished the match with a .161 hitting percentage, combining for 64 kills and 35 errors in 180 total attacks. The Wildcats won that battle with a .249 average with one more kill and just 22 errors in 173 total swings. The Hawks best hitting came in the first set when they finished with a .333 average, putting down 16 kills and suffering six errors in 30 attempts.
Individually, Cordell led the Hawks five leading hitters with a .320 average. She took a total of 25 attempts, finishing with 14 kills and six errors for a .320 average. [Kami] Nethersole was just behind her with a .259 average. Along with her match-high 22 kills, she swung into seven errors in 58 total attacks.
Freshman setter Jackie Tamburri completed her second-straight match, and fifth this season, with 50-plus assists, finishing the five-setter with 56 total. With her 56 assists against the Wildcats, Tamburri is now 23 assists shy of becoming just the third Hawks since the start of rally scoring to compile at least 1,000 assists in a single season. She will join Danielle Scoggin who finished with 1,194 assists in 2002, and Brianne Paulson who finished with 1,089 in 2003.
Tamburri was one of five different players to compiled double figure digs and one of three to finish with a double double. Tamburri was second overall in the defensive category with 14 digs, her 16th double double of the season. Leading the team overall was [Sareeta] Nethersole who finished with 15 total, her ninth of the year. Joining the pair of rookies in leading the team was McCreery with 13 and Cordell and Danielle Etta with 12 each. The double figure kills and digs against New Hampshire is the fifth double double of the season for Cordell.
The Hawks will return to action on Wednesday when they travel the shortest distance of the season for a road match and their final non-conference match of the season at Central Connecticut. The Hawks and Blue Devils will meet at 7:00 p.m. at Detrick Gymnasium on the New Britain campus.
