EDISON, NJ (Sept. 12, 2022) – Led by Siena’s pair of wins, the conference picked up five victories in MAAC volleyball action this weekend.  
 
Friday, September 9
Match 1: Fairfield (6-2, 0-0 MAAC) – 3 | Fairleigh Dickinson (3-5, 0-0 NEC) – 0
Fairfield Invitational | Alumni Hall | FAIRFIELD, CT
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Fairfield University played a pair of sweeps to open action at the Fairfield Invitational on Friday. The Stags were on the plus side of a 3-0 victory over Fairleigh Dickinson (25-21, 25-22, 25-21) in afternoon action, led on the offensive end by KJ Johnson's 11 kills and 10 by Allie Elliott. Both outside hitters nearly recorded double-doubles, finishing the match with nine and eight digs, respectively. Mikayla Haut added seven kills for the Stags, with Joelle Battles notching four and Ella Gardiner coming away with three. The setting duo of Blakely Montgomery and Abby Jandro dumped over one kill, and Nya Jones chipped in one in her lone set of action. Montgomery doled 19 assists and Jandro posted 17 as co-managers of the Stags' 6-2 attack. Defensively, libero Kyla Berg had a match-high 14 digs in two sets of work while Jandro contributed eight from the back row. At the net, Gardiner had a hand in seven of the Stags' eight team blocks. Battles was a part of four rejections and Haut got a piece of three. All told, the defense limited FDU to a .028 hitting percentage.
 
Match 2: Fairfield (6-3, 0-0 MAAC) – 0 | Washington State (7-1, 0-0 PAC-12) – 3
Fairfield Invitational | Alumni Hall | FAIRFIELD, CT
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Fairfield fell in straight sets to Washington State (17-25, 12-25, 22-25) in the nightcap. The Washington State contest saw the Stags matched up against an NCAA Championship Second Round squad from 2021. Fairfield's effort against WSU saw Johnson post a team-best seven kills with six apiece coming from Gardiner in the middle and Sabria Cooper on the right side. Haut and Battles each pitched in four, Sara Daniels landed a pair and Elliot picked up one. Montgomery finished the match with 19 assists. The Stags' block held strong against the physical Cougars with a total of five send-backs. Gardiner had a piece of all five with one solo block and four assists, while Johnson got a hand on three and Haut registered one. Berg once again led the back row with 10 digs.
 
Match 1: Marist (4-3, 0-0 MAAC) – 3 | LIU (2-5, 0-0 NEC) – 0
Art Carmichael Invitational | Keaney Gymnasium | KINGSTON, RI
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The Marist volleyball team went 1-1 on the first day of the Art Carmichael Invitational on Friday. Marist defeated LIU, 3-0, in the Red Foxes' first match of the day (26-15, 25-17, 25-20). Marist jumped out to a hot start where Sasha van der Merwe recorded six kills within the first set. In set three, the Red Foxes and the Sharks battled back in forth for the lead where eventually the Red Foxes were able to take the 25-20 victory. McKinley Fox continued to rack up the assists as she finished the match with 30 assists. Jordan Newblatt and van der Merwe each had team highs of 13 kills. Gabrielle Heller had a team-high 12 digs plus nine kills.
 
Match 2: Marist (4-4, 0-0 MAAC) – 2 | Rhode Island (2-5, 0-0 Atlantic 10) – 3
Art Carmichael Invitational | Keaney Gymnasium | KINGSTON, RI
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Despite clawing back from a two-set deficit, Marist ultimately fell to Rhode Island, 3-2 (19-25, 24-26, 25-23, 25-21, 12-15). Van der Merwe had 31 kills against the Rams, marketing the third time in program history a Red Fox notched at least 30 kills in a match. Her 31 kills tied for the second-highest total in a single match in program history. Additionally, van der Merwe totaled 14 digs and five blocks while Vanessa Zolg had eight blocks and an .857 hitting percentage with six kills and Morgan Owens led the Red Foxes with 15 digs.
 
Match 1: Rider (2-5, 0-0 MAAC) – 3 | Georgetown (0-7, 0-0 Big East) – 1
Hoya Invitational | McDonough Arena | WASHINGTON, DC
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The Rider University volleyball team split a pair of road matches in the nation's capital Friday, first topping Georgetown in four sets (14-25, 25-18, 25-21, 25-15). The Broncs struggled early against Georgetown. Leading 11-9 in the first, the Hoyas scored five-straight points to go up 16-9. Later in the set, Georgetown score six-straight points to pull away, closing out the first set with a 25-14 win. Rider stormed back in the second. Leading 7-5 in the second, Molly Strah served six-straight points as the Broncs took control. Up 13-7, Pamela Loh served five-straight, including two aces, and Rider went on to win 25-18. The third set featured nine ties and was tight throughout. Leading 22-21, Rider scored the final three points to take the set, capped by an ace from Alicia Iafrate. Tied 10-10 in the fourth, the Broncs put away the match with a six-point run on the serve of Julia Slivka, including two aces from the sophomore. Up 18-15, Loh closed out the match by serving the Broncs to a 7-0 run. For the match, the Broncs out-hit Georgetown .208 to .186.
 
Match 2: Rider (2-6, 0-0 MAAC) – 2 | George Washington (3-5, 0-0 Atlantic 10) – 3
Hoya Invitational | McDonough Arena | WASHINGTON, DC
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Rider fell to GW in the nightcap (21-25, 27-25, 22-25, 25-17, 13-15). Leading 18-17, GW scored four-straight and took the first set 25-21. The second set featured 14 ties, including the final of the set at 25-25, before Rider got kills from Tori Schrader and Morgan Romano to take the set. Up 8-6 in the fourth, GW took six-straight points and even though the Broncs fought back to within two at 21-19, but GW took the set 25-22. GW took an early 4-0 lead in set four, but Rider stormed back, tying the set at 6-6. Tied 13-13, Rider went on a 5-1 run, going on to win the set 25-17. The Broncs struggled in the fifth, falling behind 6-1. Rider responded with four-straight points to pull back within one. Up 8-7, GW scored three straight and the Broncs would not recover, falling 15-13 in the final set.
 
Match 1: Siena (0-7, 0-0 MAAC) – 1 | Dartmouth (3-1, 0-0 Ivy) – 3
Dartmouth Invitational | Leede Arena | HANOVER, NH
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Sara Wagner combined for 35 total kills over two matches, as the Siena Saints split a doubleheader with a 3-1 loss to host Dartmouth before taking their first win of the season with a thrilling 3-2 victory over the Merrimack Warriors. The win also marks head coach Simone Asque's first at the helm of the Saints. Wagner broke out with 20 total kills and 14 digs in the first match of the day, as the Saints fell to host Dartmouth 3-1 (25-23, 23-25, 25-22, 28-26). Wagner's 20 kills are the first 20-kill performance for the Saints since Nicole Deobler scored 20 kills on Sept. 15, 2018 versus Niagara. Claire Isaksen tossed out 40 assists and had 14 digs while Gracie Halley also put up 29 digs. The effort gave Isaksen her second career 40-assist match in her career, while 29 digs sets a new career-high for Halley.
 
Match 2: Siena (1-7, 0-0 MAAC) – 3 | Merrimack (2-3, 0-0 NEC) – 2
Dartmouth Invitational | Leede Arena | HANOVER, NH
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The Saints aced their way to victory against Merrimack in five sets, taking the 3-2 win (25-18, 13-25, 25-10, 23-25, 15-7) on the back of 15 kills from Wagner, along with 18 total service aces. Graduate student Emily Wunder also added in 14 kills with a .429 attack percentage. Siena took an early lead and kept it in the first, totaling a match-best 15 kills in the frame. As the momentum seemed to carry to the second as they held an 11-9 lead, Merrimack only allowed the Saints two more points en route to a 25-13 set win to tie things back up at 1-1. Both sides traded set wins once again in the third and fourth to force a deciding fifth set. Down 5-4, the Saints caught fire and turned out a 6-0 run to give them a 10-5 advantage. After a service error, Siena took five of the last six rallies – including a match-clinching block from Monet Latunde and Wagner to seal the deal 15-7 and the match 3-2. Isaksen tossed out 38 assists, while Halley once again led in digs with 12. For Merrimack, Sydney Green led with 15 total kills, and Cate Wright was the only Warrior in double-digit digs with 11.
 
Canisius (2-6, 0-0 MAAC) – 0 | Youngstown State (4-4, 0-0 Horizon) – 3
Western New York Invitational | Koessler Athletic Center | BUFFALO, NY
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The Canisius volleyball team fell in straight sets to Youngstown State on Friday afternoon at the Koessler Athletic Center in the second match of the 2022 Western New York Invitational. The Penguins posted the 3-0 victory after recording set scores of 26-24, 25-14, 25-19. Ella Loussia led the way with 10 kills and two service aces, while Taylor Baldwin chipped in seven kills and eight digs. Ella Bourque was credited with 21 assists to go with two kills and two aces, while senior libero Bree Long was credited with a team-high 15 digs in the losing effort.
 
Iona (5-2, 0-0 MAAC) – 1 | Georgia (6-1, 0-0 SEC) – 3
Northeastern Tournament/Harvard Invitational | Cabot Center | BOSTON, MA
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The Iona University volleyball team came up short in a four-set defeat (25-20, 15-25, 21-25,14-25) to SEC opponent Georgia on Friday afternoon. In the first ever meeting between the schools, the Gaels managed to strike first, taking the opening frame capitalizing on their best hitting percentage of the match at .300 leading to 12 kills. However, Georgia managed to regroup and take the final three sets of the match to earn the non-conference victory. Morgan Madasz and Julia Thomas tallied a season-high in blocks finishing with four and three respectively. Jen Soto also added three blocks of her own in the loss. Mackenzie Wiggins poured in a team-high eight kills with Soto and Greta Stjade tallying seven apiece. Tamara Pichardo and Samantha Juran combined for 27 of Iona's 30 assists on the day. For the seventh straight match, Hope Matschner led the Gaels with 13 digs.
 
Manhattan (0-4, 0-0 MAAC) – 0 | St. Francis Brooklyn (3-6, 0-0 NEC) – 3
Big Apple Tournament | Levien Gymnasium | NEW YORK, NY
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Manhattan battled St. Francis Brooklyn in three close sets Friday afternoon but ultimately fell, 3-0 (25-16, 25-22, 25-21). The leader in kills was Julia Menocal, with a total of 11 (.148) for Manhattan. Second, in line with kills at nine, was Camila Gomez. Defensively, Sarah Emmons and Sophia Lotto with seven digs each. Emmons added 25 assists, which is a new season-high for the first-year Jasper.
 
Match 1: Quinnipiac (1-4, 0-0 MAAC) – 0 | Morehead State (3-3, 0-0 OVC) – 3
Comfort Inn-vitational | Johnson Arena | MOREHEAD, KY
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The Quinnipiac volleyball program suffered back-to-back losses on the road against Morehead State and North Alabama to open play at the Comfort Inn-vitational held at Johnson Arena. Against Morehead State (24-26, 20-25, 23-25), Quinnipiac Alexandra Tennon (11), Ginevra Giovagnoni (10), and Nicole Legg (10) led the way in kills while Damla Gunes (20) and Chloe Ka’Ahanui (15) combined for 35 assists.
 
Match 2: Quinnipiac (1-5, 0-0 MAAC) – 2 | North Alabama (7-1, 0-0 ASUN) – 3
Comfort Inn-vitational | Johnson Arena | MOREHEAD, KY
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In a 3-2 loss to North Alabama (25-20, 25-19, 20-25, 16-25, 12-15), the Bobcats were led by Tennon (16), Aryanah Diaz (14), and Legg (14) in kills and Diaz (33), Giovagnoni (22), and Ka’Ahanui (16) in digs. In the first set, the two sides traded points to a 19-19 tie in the set before back-to-back kills from Ginevra Giovagnoni and Lexi Morse put QU ahead 21-19 to force North Alabama to call a timeout. After North Alabama cut QU's lead to 21-20, the Bobcats went on a 4-0 run to take the set 25-20. In the second set, the Bobcats and the Lions traded points to a 12-12 tie before Quinnipiac slowly inched ahead for a 22-17 lead. North Alabama was able to cut it to as close as 23-19, however an attack error from the Lions and a block from Alexandra Tennon resulted in a set win for QU. The two sides played to an 18-18 tie in the third set before North Alabama pushed ahead 19-18 to force a QU timeout. Out of the timeout, the Bobcats knotted the set at 20-20, however, North Alabama went on a 5-0 run to take the set win. North Alabama jumped out to a 15-5 lead and eventually held on for a 25-16 set win to force a fifth set. In the fifth set, the two sides remained nearly even more than halfway through the set until the Lions pulled ahead and held on for the 15-12 set win and match victory.
 
Saint Peter’s (0-9, 0-0 MAAC) – 0 | Providence (5-2, 0-0 Big East) – 3
Friar Classic | Alumni Hall | PROVIDENCE, RI
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The Saint Peter's women's volleyball lost three sets to none in a non-conference matchup against Providence on Friday (17-25, 12-25, 15-25). Morgan Thurlow was the Peacocks' leading scorer, tallying 6.5 points. Elena Bilhartz had five kills and two blocks, Ivanka Sikiric had a team high eight assists and recorded two digs, and Laken Dillion had nine digs and two service aces.
 
Saturday, September 10
Siena (2-7, 0-0 MAAC) – 3 | Hartford (0-9, 0-0 America East) – 0
Dartmouth Invitational | Leede Arena | HANOVER, NH
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Hailey Hinkel ran up 10 kills in three sets to lead Siena to a 3-0 (25-11, 25-16, 25-23) sweep of Hartford in the final match of the Dartmouth Invitational Saturday morning. Hinkel's 10 kills were backed up by a nine-kill effort from graduate student Emily Wunder, with sophomore Sara Wagner chipping in seven kills and a team-high four aces. Senior Gracie Halley added 12 digs, and Claire Isaksen tossed out 21 assists. As a team, the Saints hit a season-high .346. on attack. The Saints ran through the first set with a commanding 25-11 victory, using a 7-0 midway through the set to create the cushion. In the second, Hartford grabbed the first three points before the Saints ran up a match-high 9-0 run and pulled away for the set win 25-16 to go up 2-0 in a match for the first time this season. The Hawks would provide some problems for the Saints in the third, as Hartford was able to get to a 19-16 lead late in the set. Despite Hartford controlling most of the set, a kill from Monet Latunde kickstarted another Siena run of the 5-0 variety to flip the script and give Siena a 21-19 lead. Hartford made it close at the end, pulling the score to a 24-23 Siena lead. However, an error by Hartford closed the door on their chances to take a set, giving Siena the three set sweep.
 
Canisius (2-7, 0-0 MAAC) – 1 | Bucknell (7-1, 0-0 Patriot League) – 3
Western New York Invitational | Koessler Athletic Center | BUFFALO, NY
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The Canisius volleyball team ended the 2022 Western New York Invitational with a 3-1 loss to Bucknell on Saturday afternoon at the Koessler Athletic Center. The Bison took the match by set scores of 25-12, 17-25, 25-20, 25-17. Ella Loussia led the Griffs' offense on Saturday, as she recorded a team-high 13 kills, her fifth-straight match with double-digits in the kills column. Emma Mans added a career-high 12 kills in the match, while Elle Shult was credited with three service aces and four blocks. Ella Bourque was good for 36 assists, while Bree Long registered 27 digs in the losing effort. As a team, Canisius hit just .107 for the match, while Bucknell posted a team hitting percentage of .254.
 
Fairfield (6-4, 0-0 MAAC) – 0 | High Point (7-3, 0-0 Big South) – 3
Fairfield Invitational | Alumni Hall | FAIRFIELD, CT
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After a win for Fairfield last season in High Point's first-ever trip to campus, the visiting Panthers returned the favor on Saturday afternoon at the RecPlex and will head back to North Carolina on the heels of a 3-0 decision (25-18, 25-22, 25-12). The Stags were led by match highs of 10 kills and seven digs from KJ Johnson. Johnson was the lone Stag in double figures, racking up her 10 kills with just one error to post a .346 hitting percentage on the outside. Allie Elliott shared time in the L2 spot and put down six kills on 13 swings with one error for a .385 percentage, The rest of the offensive spread included three kills apiece from Ella Gardiner, Mikayla Haut and Sabria Cooper, two from Sara Daniels and one from Joelle Battles. The setting duo of Blakely Montgomery and Abby Jandro dished out 16 and nine assists, respectively, piloting Fairfield to a .184 hitting percentage. Defensively, Johnson's seven digs led the effort following by four apiece for Montgomery, Morgan Doll and Avery Schner. The Stags totaled three blocks, including two assists apiece for Haut and Daniels.
 
Match 1: Iona (5-3, 0-0 MAAC) – 0 | Northeastern (3-5, 0-0 CAA) – 3
Northeastern Tournament/Harvard Invitational | Cabot Center | BOSTON, MA
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The Iona University volleyball team dropped its final two matches of the weekend, first dropping a tight three-set match to Northeastern (21-25, 21-25, 25-27) on Saturday afternoon. Mackenzie Wiggins earned All-Tournament team honors, recording 31 kills and 11 digs across three matches. In the first match against Northeastern, Hope Matschner poured in a match-high, 24 digs while Samantha Juran finished with 13 assists and a career-high four aces. On the attack, Wiggins finished with eight kills while Morgan. Madasz poured in seven
 
Match 2: Iona (5-4, 0-0 MAAC) – 2 | Harvard (1-5, 0-0 Ivy League) – 3
Northeastern Tournament/Harvard Invitational | Cabot Center | BOSTON, MA
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Iona dropped a back-and-forth five-set thriller, (15-25, 26-24, 23-25, 30-28, 11-15) to Harvard  in the nightcap. In a thrilling fourth set, that saw an incredible 22 ties the Gaels showed the ultimate fight, saving three match points. Ariana White gave Harvard their first match point after a kill but that was erased on a clutch kill from Jen Soto. Facing a second match point, Iona survived after a service error and later trailing 28-27, Elena Bianchi tallied a kill to keep the Gaels alive. Bianchi's late heroics continued, recording a kill on the following point and after an attack error Iona took the marathon set to send the match to a decider. Iona found themselves with three leads in the final set and after a kill from Wiggins, the Gaels led 9-8. Unfortunately, tied at 10, Harvard finished the game winning five of the final six points to take the thrilling five setter. Madasz recorded a season-high 16 kills on an efficient attacking percentage of .467%. Wiggins recorded a new career-high 15 kills and Soto was the third player in double-figures offensively with 10 kills. Juran added a season-high 30 assists while Matschner recorded a match-high 21 digs in the loss.
 
Match 1: Manhattan (0-5, 0-0 MAAC) – 0 | Columbia (3-2, 0-0 Ivy League) – 3
Big Apple Tournament | Levien Gymnasium | NEW YORK, NY
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Manhattan battled Columbia and Lafayette in the last two games of the Big Apple Tournament. The first match against Columbia was a loss for Manhattan, with the final score being 3-0 (25-19, 25-15, 25-18). In the first match against Columbia, Columbia maintained early leads in two out of the three sets. In the third set, Manhattan took the early lead and maintained that until Columbia scored an ace on Manhattan to take the lead, 9-8. Later on in the set, Manhattan ended the eight-point run by Columbia on a kill by Kelly Markowski to stop the run at 14-10. Unfortunately, Manhattan wouldn't come within four points again in this set. The leader in kills against Columbia was Julia Menocal with eight (.261) and second was Camila Gomez with four. The leader in assists was the freshman, who led the team in digs against St. Francis Brooklyn, Sarah Emmons with 11. Gomez and Bella Nascimento had seven digs to lead the defensive efforts.
 
Match 2: Manhattan (0-6, 0-0 MAAC) – 0 | Lafayette (2-4, 0-0 Patriot League) – 3
Big Apple Tournament | Levien Gymnasium | NEW YORK, NY
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The second match of the day against Lafayette was also a loss for Manhattan with a final score of 3-0 (25-12, 25-21, 25-13). The second match saw Manhattan fall to Lafayette. In the second set, Manhattan prevented Lafayette from taking the early lead by firing back after each time they scored. For the duration of the entire set, neither team had more than three. There were seven lead changes in the third set, with the score being tied 12 times. The set took a turn when Lafayette scored off a kill and went on a four-point run for the win. The leaders for the Jaspers were Menocal with nine kills (.280) and Gomez with 10 digs. Emmons had 20 assists and added five digs.
 
Marist (4-5, 0-0 MAAC) – 0 | Boston College (9-0, 0-0 ACC) – 3
Art Carmichael Invitational | Keaney Gymnasium | KINGSTON, RI
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Marist volleyball took on the undefeated Boston College Eagles in day two of the URI invite, but the Red Foxes fell short, 3-0 (9-25, 14-25, 23-25). Back-to-back aces by Jordan Newblatt gave Marist a 13-11 lead in set three, and her kill put the Red Foxes up 20-19. BC answered with five straight points. The Red Foxes then fought off three straight match points before the Eagles closed out the match. Sasha van der Merwe led the Red Foxes with 11 kills in the match. McKinley Fox finished the match with 26 assists. Newblatt also finished with nine kills on a .316 hitting percentage and a team-high seven digs on the day.

Niagara (2-6, 0-0 MAAC) – 0 | James Madison (5-3, 0-0 Sun Belt) – 3
UMBC Tournament | Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena | BALTIMORE, MD
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The Dukes swept Niagara, 25-18, 25-16, 25-18, Saturday afternoon in non-conference volleyball action in Baltimore. Liana Tolliver, Jenna Vogen, and Ashley Simpson led NU with five kills. Simpson had a team-best .179 hitting percentage. Kylie Blessing led NU with 10 assists, the third time this season that the freshman reached double-digit assists. Kinga Wronska led NU with eight digs, followed by Bella Peroni with seven.
 
Quinnipiac (1-6, 0-0 MAAC) – 1 | Robert Morris (6-3, 0-0 Horizon) – 3
Comfort Inn-vitational | Johnson Arena | MOREHEAD, KY
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Quinnipiac volleyball closed the Comfort Inn-vitational with a 3-1 loss against Robert Morris at Johnson Arena on Saturday afternoon. Alexandra Tennon led the Bobcats with 16 kills and contributed seven digs and two blocks Ginevra Giovagnoni added 13 kills and 11 digs for the double-double, marking the first double-double of the first-year's collegiate career. Aryanah Diaz contributed 10 kills and 16 digs for a double-double while Damla Gunes added 35 assists in the contest.
 
Rider (2-7, 0-0 MAAC) – 0 | Binghamton (7-2, 0-0 America East) – 3
Hoya Invitational | McDonough Arena | WASHINGTON, DC
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The Rider University volleyball team dropped its final match of the Hoya Invitational on Saturday, falling in three sets to Binghamton (16-25, 20-25, 15-25). Binghamton jumped out to an early lead in the first. Trailing 13-6, Jordan Taylor had three-straight kills as part of a 5-0 run to cut the lead to two. The Bearcats countered with an 8-2 run, extending their lead to 21-13 on their way to winning the opening set 25-16. Binghamton carried over the momentum into the second. Tied 2-2, the Bearcats scored six-straight points to go up 8-2. The Bearcats continued to extend the lead, eventually building a 15-4 advantage. The Broncs slowly whittled away at the lead, but the damage had already been done. Down 24-16, The Broncs staved off four set points on the serve of Jenna Amaro, before ultimately falling 25-20. The Broncs' struggles carried over to the third set. Tied 6-6, Binghamton went on a 12-2 run that put the match away. Down 23-10, Rider scored four-straight points, including a pair of kills by Christina Blount, but the Bearcats took the set 25-15.
 
Match 1: Saint Peter’s (0-10, 0-0 MAAC) – 0 | Holy Cross (2-8, 0-0 Patriot League) – 3
Friar Classic | Alumni Hall | PROVIDENCE, RI
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The Saint Peter's women's volleyball lost three sets to none in two non-conference matchups against Holy Cross and NJIT on Saturday. Freshman Sydney Kuzma and freshman Morgan Thurlow were the Peacocks' leading scorers on the day, both tallying 16 points across the two matches. In the first match-up, the Peacocks were unable to break 20 points in a set, as they lost 3-0 to Holy Cross (16-25, 15-25, 19-25). They made a push in the third set, but ended up falling 25-19.
 
Match 2: Saint Peter’s (0-11, 0-0 MAAC) – 0 | NJIT (3-8, 0-0 America East) – 3
Friar Classic | Alumni Hall | PROVIDENCE, RI
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Saint Peter's also fell down early in the second match, losing the first set against NJIT 25-14.
The Peacocks fought in the second set, as the first 20 points were split by the two teams. NJIT would pull away late to take it 25-21. Saint Peter's held 20-16 and 21-20 leads in the third set, but were unable to win their first set of the season as NJIT completed the sweep, 25-22.
 
Saturday, September 11
Fairfield (6-5, 0-0 MAAC) – 2 | Howard (4-5, 0-0 MEAC) – 3
Fairfield Invitational | Alumni Hall | FAIRFIELD, CT
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For the second time this week, Fairfield erased a 2-0 deficit to force a deciding fifth frame. However, unlike in Wednesday's win over St. John's, the Stags could not complete the comeback on Sunday against visiting Howard as the Bison to a 3-2 win to conclude the 2022 Fairfield Invitational. KJ Johnson led the Stags offensively and defensively with 23 kills and 16 digs. Johnson's 23 kills came on .311 hitting (23-4-61) as she racked up 15 of her kills over the final three sets. Her team-leading 16 digs completed the third double-double of the season for the 2021 MAAC Player of the Year.
 
Niagara (2-7, 0-0 MAAC) – 1 | UMBC (4-3, 0-0 America East) – 3
UMBC Tournament | Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena | BALTIMORE, MD
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Niagara would battle in a four-set match with UMBC, but the Retrievers came out on top 3-1 (25-16, 23-25, 25-12, 25-22) Sunday afternoon in non-conference action. Niagara had 12 block assists, which are second-most for a match this season for the Purple Eagles. Taylor Allen had a team-high three blocks, her third match this season with three or more. Kinga Wronska led NU with 11 kills, her third match this season with double-digit kills. Casey Brown recorded her sixth match with double-digit assists with a team-best 19. NU finished the four-set match with a .230 hitting percentage, with Wronska leading the team at .360 percent.
 
The 2022 MAAC Volleyball Championship takes place from November 16 through 19 at ESPN Wide World of Sports in Lake Buena Vista, FL. The 10-team, single-elimination championship will feature four rounds of action with the opening round taking place on Wednesday, November 16, followed by the quarterfinals on Thursday, November 17, the semifinals on Friday, November 18, and concluding with the championship match on Saturday, November 19. For all information regarding the 2022 MAAC Volleyball Championship, please visit maacsports.com/vb.
 
About the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference:
With 11 institutions strongly bound by the sound principles of quality and integrity in academics and excellence in athletics, the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) is in its 42nd year of competition during the 2022-23 academic year. Current conference members include: Canisius College, Fairfield University, Iona University, Manhattan College, Marist College, Mount St. Mary’s University, Niagara University, Quinnipiac University, Rider University, Saint Peter’s University, and Siena College.
 
Stay up to date with the MAAC on social media by following @MAACSports on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram or visit MAACSports.com for all the latest MAAC news.