WEST HARTFORD, Conn. —The Hartford volleyball team swept its final two matches of the Hartford Hawks Invitational on Saturday, scoring 3-1 victories against both St. Francis Brooklyn and neighboring rival CCSU at the Hartford Volleyball Gym.
Junior
Abby Nash combined for 40 kills, including a career-high 22 against CCSU, as Hartford improves to 7-7 on the season.
HARTFORD 3, ST. FRANCIS BROOKLYN 1 (17-25, 25-17, 25-15, 25-18)
- SET ONE:St.Francis built an early 12-9 lead in the first set and never looked back. Pushing their advantage into double figures at 21-11, the Terriers took the set by a 25-17 final.
- SET TWO:Hartford stormed back from a 5-1 deficit by using a 14-3 run to go ahead, 15-8. The Hawks continued to roll, extending the advantage into double figures at 22-12 before evening up the match with a 25-17 victory. Junior Abby Nash delivered five kills in the win, while St. Francis committed 13 attack errors in 19 attempts.
- SET THREE:Scoring the first five points of the set, the Hawks built a comfortable 11-3 lead. The Terriers crept their way back into the set, though, as they trimmed a 16-8 Hawks' advantage in half at 18-14. But Hartford held off the charge, as a service ace by Megan Anderson capped a set-ending 7-1 run.
- SET FOUR:St. Francis led early, pulling ahead by an 8-5 count, but the Hawks responded with five straight points to go up, 10-8. Hartford continued to pull away, expanding the lead to 17-12. The Terriers wouldn't come any closer than three points for the remainder of the set, as the Hawks finished off the match with a 25-18 win.
- HARTFORD NOTES & HIGHLIGHTS:Nash registered a match- and career-high 22 kills, finishing with a .429 hitting percentage … Anderson dished out 40 assists while recording three service aces … freshman Robin Helms was strong defensively, registering six blocks.
HARTFORD, CCSU (17-25, 25-20, 25-14, 25-15)
- SET ONE:CCSU held the advantage early… padded the lead, taking a 20-13 advantage… led from start to finish
- SET TWO:CCSU spoiled Hartford's early lead to force an early tie, but the Hawks answered to take a 14-10 lead that they would not relinquish for the remainder of the set. Hartford was solid offensively, hitting .516 as a team while combining for just two errors.
- SET THREE:The Hawks surged for a 9-2 run to break open a 5-5 game and take a comfortable 14-7 advantage. Down the stretch, four straight kills — including two from Bridges — and a service ace by Lindsay capped a 5-0 spurt that pushed the advantage to 20-11. Hartford would finish the set just as strong, scoring five of the final eight points.
- SET FOUR:Hartford benefited from another early lead in the final set. Taking a 9-5 lead, the Hawks quickly saw the advantage grow to 20-11 before they cruised to the 10-point defeat.
- HARTFORD NOTES & HIGHLIGHTS:The Hawks combined to hit .376 in the nightcap … Lindsay added 18 kills for the Hawks, while Anderson finished with a career-high 55 assists in the four-set victory.
NEXT ON TAP
The Hawks' final tune-up before the start of non-conference play lands the team at Bryant for a midweek match. First serve from Smithfield, R.I., is set for 6 p.m.
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