WEST HARTFORD, Conn. – The Hartford volleyball team had an impressive showing in its home debut, as the Hawks downed Central Connecticut in three sets on Wednesday evening. Hartford improves to 1-2 with the win, which marked the first for first-year head coach
Vinh Nguyen.
The Blue Devils dip to 1-4 on the season with the defeat.
PHOTO GALLERY
HARTFORD 3, CCSU 0 (25-23, 25-15, 25-17)
- SET ONE: Despite the Hawks controlling the pace early and going up by as many as four, CCSU rallied to take a pair of leads down the stretch. But Hartford responded, scoring three-straight points to break open a 20-20 tie before finishing off the Blue Devils by a 25-23 final. The Hawks combined for 10 blocks, led by four from junior Jenna Bridges.
- SET TWO: Hartford jumped out to an early lead again, pushing the margin to as many as 10 at 14-4. The Blue Devils chipped away and managed to pull within five at 17-12 before the Hawks clamped down by delivering an 8-3 run to end the set. Senior Paulina Modestow paced Hartford with four kills in six attempts.
- SET THREE: The Hawks and Blue Devils were on each others heels in the third set, as back-and-forth action resulted in a 16-16 tie. Hartford ended the set red-hot, though, holding CCSU to just two points on a pair of kills to put the match away. The Hawks hit a season-best .333 in that set, which saw five players register at least three kills.
- NOTES & HIGHLIGHTS: Sophomore Megan Anderson registered a season-high 29 assists to lead Hartford, while Bridges and sophomore Lacey Zadra each had six blocks to pace the defense … Zadra's six blocks bested a previous career high of five, set against Providence last weekend … as a team, Hartford combined for a season-best 12 blocks.
NEXT ON TAP
The Hawks continue action in the Battle of Connecticut with two more matches this weekend. Hartford will first take on Sacred Heart (at Yale) at 4:30 p.m., before facing Fairfield (at Quinnipiac) on Saturday at 1 p.m.
