LORETTO, Pa.— The Long Island University volleyball team won its fourth-straight match on Friday evening, with a 3-0 sweep over Saint Francis U. The Sharks downed the Red Flash in straight sets, 25-18, 25-15, 25-22 at DeGol Arena.
LIU registered a season-high .327 hitting percentage in the win over Saint Francis. Three-time reigning NEC Rookie of the Week,
Karolina Nova continued her strong start to league play with a team-high 14 kills and 13 digs. Nova has posted a double-double in six straight matches for the Sharks. Senior
Kora Schaberl registered 13 kills on a stellar .462 hitting percentage. Senior
Amanda Hubbard recorded 27 assists to go along with eight digs and freshman
Darragh Dixon added 11 assists and five digs for LIU. Sophomore libero
Anastasia Scott tallied 10 digs for the Sharks.
LIU jumped out to an early lead to start the set with three kills and a block assist from Schaberl and freshman
Miranda Strongman to go up 4-1. The Red Flash responded with three straight points to tie the set up. Back-and-forth play would ensue for the next few rotations before the Sharks capitalized on several Saint Francis errors on an extended 10-2 stretch to jump out in front, 17-9. LIU continued to hold the lead as the set wore on, holding off a Red Flash charge that cut the deficit to five at 22-17. The Sharks capitalized on kills from Nova and junior
Masa Zirojevic along with a block assist from junior
Kristina Mamic and Schaberl to seal the opening set 25-18.
The Red Flash took the lead early in the opening set as a 4-1 advantage prompted a LIU timeout. LIU rattled off three straight points out of the break with a kill by Zirojevic tying things up 4-4. The score remained tied for the next two rotations before the Sharks used an eight point run to take control of the set at 14-6. LIU continued it's comfortable lead through the tail end of the set, earning a 25-15 second set win. LIU registered a .393 hitting percentage in the second set.
The third set saw both teams trading points early with a 6-6 standstill. After a Sharks point, Saint Francis took a slight lead on a three-point swing for a 9-7 advantage. LIU responded with a five-point run led by a pair of kills from Schaberl to jump ahead 12-9. The Red Flash answered with a 5-2 stretch to knot the set up at 14-14. Back-and-forth action ensued for the next two rotations before the Sharks tallied three straight kills by Nova and Schaberl to take a 19-16 lead. Saint Francis would hang around with LIU eventually cutting the deficit to one point at 22-21. The Sharks used a 3-1 closing stretch as one final kill from Nova sealed the 25-22 set win and the match.
UP NEXT
The Sharks close out the weekend trip to Pennsylvania with a 5:00 p.m. match on Saturday, October 12 at Robert Morris.
