THROGGS NECK, NY – On Wednesday night, the Maritime College volleyball team concluded its season-opening three-match homestand against Skyline Conference rival Mount St. Vincent. The match was closely contested, but the Dolphins (1-1, 1-0 Skyline) came away with a straight-sets, 30-28, 25-23, 25-23 victory over the Privateers (1-2, 1-1 Skyline) at Riesenberg Gymnasium.
There were 16 ties and eight lead changes in the first set. After Maritime built an early 7-3 cushion, Mount St. Vincent rallied to force a 10-10 deadlock. The Dolphins eventually went ahead, 23-21, before the Privateers responded with three straight kills to earn a set point opportunity. Maritime had four set point chances, but Mount St. Vincent fought each one off. Finally, on their second set point, the Dolphins closed out the frame, 30-28.
It was more of the same in the second set, which saw 12 ties and six lead changes. This time it was the Dolphins who took the early lead, 4-1, before Maritime battled back to go ahead 11-10. With the Privateers in front 22-21, Mount St. Vincent scored three straight points to force a Maritime timeout. A service error made it 24-23, but the Dolphins took the next point to finish off the set, 25-23.
In the third set, Maritime again went ahead early, scoring four of the first six points. However, Mount St. Vincent used an 11-4 run to turn an 8-6 deficit into a 17-12 cushion. The Privateers responded with 5-1 rally of their own to get back within one, 18-17, before the Dolphins stretched their lead to 22-18. Maritime scored the next five points, including three
Brooke Kirchner (Lawrence, NY) service aces, to pull ahead, 23-22. Mount St. Vincent countered with three consecutive points to earn its second straight 25-23 set win and a 3-0 sweep in the match.
Erica Pagano (Lawrence, NY) had a double-double for the Privateers, finishing with 13 kills and 18 digs. She also posted a .370 hitting percentage, committing just three errors in 27 attempts. Kirchner recorded a double-double of her own with 27 assists and 10 digs to go along with five aces.
Jessica Mele (Southold, NY) contributed 10 digs, while
Victoria Cordero (Bronx, NY) tallied 15 digs. As a team, the Privateers hit .150 (34 kills, 15 errors, 127 attempts) in the match.
Melanieann Broderick paced Mount St. Vincent with 18 kills, while Elizabeth Flores tallied 15 kills and 12 digs. Lydia Ayree dished out 28 assists to go along with 11 digs, and Isabelle Garcia notched a match-high 21 digs. Katherine Torres added 10 digs, as Mount St. Vincent held a 67-60 advantage in that category. The Dolphins hit .168 (39-18-125) as a team.
Maritime hits the road for the first time this season on Thursday, when the Privateers visit Medgar Evers (1-7) for a 7 p.m. contest.
