THE BASICS:


RESULT: Hartford 3, Binghamton 2 (21-25, 25-20, 13-25, 25-15, 15-12)
LOCATION: Hartford Volleyball Gym (West Hartford, Conn.)
RECORDS: Hartford (4-13, 1-3 America East), Binghamton (5-13, 2-3)

THE LEAD:
Abby Nash had a career-high 19 kills, including seven in the fifth set, as the Hartford volleyball team came from behind to drop Binghamton on Sunday afternoon. It marked the first conference win of the season for the Hawks.
 
In addition to Nash, Paulina Modestow also finished in double figures with 11 kills to go along with eight digs and four aces. Montrashay Worley (10) and Megan Scherer (11) each finished with double-digit digs, while Jenna Bridges delivered seven blocks. Megan Anderson doled out 43 assists in the victory as well.
 
Gabby Alicea (15) led three players in double-digit kills for Binghamton, with Kaelan Haeg (13) and Lexi LaGoy (10) also topping 10. Sarah Ngo delivered 47 assists, while Samantha Gioiosa led all players with 17 digs in the defeat.


 
SET-BY-SET
• The first set saw Hartford with the first run, netting four-straight points with Modestow at the serve to take a 9-5 lead. But Binghamton was able to chip away, eventually tying things up at 12-all. The Bearcats then went on a rally of their own, with Alicea at the serve, and garnered a 17-12 lead that they would not relinquish on the way to a 25-21 win.
• The second was a tight battle in the early going, with Binghamton holding a 14-11 lead midway through the stanza. The Bearcats pushed the lead to 20-17 after a Ngo kill, but a Hawks kill from Brittany Braun put the serve in the hands of Nicole Etta. Etta then went on a rampage, rolling off three aces in a span of seven points, as the Hawks tallied the final eight points of the set for a 25-20 victory.
• Binghamton got out to an early advantage in the third, opening an 11-6 lead to force a Hartford timeout. The Hawks stifled that rally, but BU regained the momentum and went on to a 25-13 victory.
• In the fourth, the Hawks held a slight advantage thanks in part to an Etta ace that made it 11-6, but Binghamton rallied back to cut it to 11-10. The home squad took control at that point, though, with a Modestow kill turning the momentum and three-straight Modestow aces helping the Hawks to a 23-14 lead. Hartford went on to take the set, 25-15, to send it to the fifth.
• Hartford started the final stanza on a roll, with Nash leading the Hawks with three kills in Hartford's first four points, putting the home squad ahead 4-1. But Binghamton was able to stem the tide, chipping away and then finally taking the lead at 9-8. Nash kept on firing, though, and another kill put Hartford back in the lead, 12-11. The Hawks pushed it to 14-11, then finished things off with Nash's 19th and final kill to garner the victory.
 
UP NEXT:
The Hawks head to the road next weekend for contests against UMass Lowell (Friday, 6 p.m.) and New Hampshire (Saturday, 4 p.m.).