THE BASICS:

RESULT: Central Michigan 3, Hartford 1 (22-25, 26-24, 25-23, 27-25)
LOCATION: Gillis Field House (West Point, N.Y.)
RECORDS: Hartford (0-1), Central Michigan (2-0)

THE LEAD:
Katy Henchy led four players in double digits with 13 kills, but Central Michigan staged late rallies in each of the last three sets to win a tight battle, 3-1, in the season opener for the Hartford volleyball team.
 
Henchy was joined in double digits by Paulina Modestow and freshmen Abby Nash and Daisy Eklund, who each posted 11 kills of their own. Nash and Eklund made it a double-double in their debuts, delivering 12 and 11 digs, respectively, while Nicole Etta led the squad with 22 digs. Jenna Bridges delivered six blocks in the 2017 opener.
 
Jordan Bueter led the way with 17 kills for Central Michigan, while Paige Carey (11) and Taylor Robertson (10) each finished in double digits as well.
 
COACH KALLICK'S TAKE:
"We fought really well against a good team tonight. It was a highly competitive match that could have gone either way. This is exactly the kind of match that shows both our potential as a team and will help us build and grow as we work towards conference play."
 
SET-BY-SET
• Hartford got off to a slow start in the opening set, with CMU opening a 9-3 lead. After the teams traded points to 10-4, the Hawks rallied off five-straight points and pulled even at 11-all. The teams traded blows to a 17-16 score, then Hartford embarked on a 7-2 run, culminating with a Modestow kill, to take a 24-18 lead, then held on for a 25-22 win.
• The second saw a similar start, as the Chippewas opened up an early 8-4 advantage and traded points to a 10-6 lead. The Hawks cut it to 11-9 on a Nash kill, but CMU pushed the lead back to 17-13. Hartford rallied again, scoring five-of-six points, as another Nash kill knotted the score at 18-18. A Bridges kill pushed Central Michigan to the brink, but the squad rallied and took a 26-24 score to knot things up at 1-1.
• The two teams went back-and-forth in the third, with the Hawks taking a 6-3 lead on a Nash kill. The Chips rallied to tie things up at 8-8, but consecutive kills by Henchy made it an 11-8 lead again for Hartford. CMU then began to gain momentum, opening a 23-19 lead and then pushing it to 24-21. Consecutive kills by Bridges and Nash cut it to 24-23, but the Chippewas were able to finish off a 25-23 win.
• The fourth was yet another battle to the finish, with the teams tied at 19 different points during the set. The Hawks had the biggest lead of the stanza at 15-12 following a Megan Scherer ace midway through the set, but CMU rallied for another deadlock at 15. A Modestow kill put Hartford on the brink of tying things up in the match at 25-24, but the Chippewas finished things off with three-straight points to take it 27-25.
 
UP NEXT:
Hartford will finish off the Army Invitational on Saturday with contests against St. Francis Brooklyn (3 p.m.) and Army West Point (7 p.m.). Live stats will be available for both games, with live video also available for the nightcap.