THE BASICS:

RESULT: CCSU 3, Hartford 0
SET 1: CCSU 25, Hartford 19
SET 2: CCSU 25, Hartford 16
SET 3: CCSU 25, Hartford 15
RECORDS: Hartford (0-12); CCSU (7-4)
LOCATION: Detrick Gymnasium (New Britain, Conn.)

THE LEAD: The University of Hartford volleyball team fell in the opening game of the CCSU Invitational to the host-team Blue Devils on Saturday, as it dropped a 3-0 decision. Sophomore Katy Henchy led the Hawks' offense with 11 kills, a season-high, while freshman Paulina Modestow added eight with a pair of blocks in the losing effort.  Pacing the defense was freshman Shay Worley and junior Paola Llerandi, who each had double-digit blocks with 10.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

SET ONE:
Central Connecticut jumped out to a 5-1 lead before Hartford started to find a groove offensively. Trailing by four at 6-2, the Hawks closed the gap to 6-4 on a CCSU service error followed by a service ace by Modestow. The Hawks wouldn't come any closer than two points to the Blue Devils, though, as the home team used a 7-3 rally to take a seven point edge. A .222 hit percentage during that stretch would help Central Connecticut slowly put down Hartford and come out on top, 25-19.

SET TWO:
The Blue Devils committed just three errors in 28 total attempts and tallied 14 kills in set two, as a .393 hit percentage led the home team to a 25-16 decision. A pair of kills from Raquel Quirarte and three Hawks' attacking errors helped Central Connecticut build an early 6-0 lead, one it would never relinquish. Hartford would never pull any closer than four throughout the set. Modestow and Henchy each had three kills to pace the Hawks.

SET THREE:
The third set started out similar to the second, with CCSU jumping out to an early lead. This time, though, the Hawks came back from their early deficit and tied up the set early at 4-4. Hartford remained within striking distance, forcing a pair of Blue Devils' attacking errors to force another tie, this time at 9-9. From there, though, the Blue Devils started to run away with the set, as they used a 9-1 run to take a commanding 18-10 advantage over the Hawks. CCSU went on to win the set on a service error followed by a service ace by Kaitlyn Kushman. Quirarte had six kills for the Blue Devils to pace all hitters while Henchy recorded five for the Hawks.

UP NEXT:
The Hawks conclude the three-match Central Connecticut State Invitational on Saturday. Hartford will face Holy Cross at 11 a.m. before it takes on Brown at 4 p.m.