Hofstra University’s volleyball team extended their win streak to nine games with a 3-1 victory over UCN-Wilmington (UNCW) on Sunday, Oct. 20. The Pride swept the Seahawks on the road in a two-match series.
Hofstra now sits at 9-1 in conference play, tying with the College of Charleston for the best record in the Coastal Athletic Association. The Pride only faced one defeat in CAA play this season to Stony Brook University. Since then, the Pride has been on fire, remaining victorious in every match.
The Pride put up strong numbers against the Seahawks with 53 total kills and 72 digs. Yagmur Cinel led the Pride with a season-high of 13 kills. Iyanna Garvin, Emilly Nunes and Izadora Stedile each had nine kills apiece. Stedile and Chiara Cucco held down the Pride defense with 20 and 18 kills, respectively.
Hofstra took off in set one with a 25-20 victory over the Seahawks. After an opening kill from UNCW’s Marnie Ursem, the Pride went on a five-point run, putting them up early in the first set. The Seahawks answered by going on a run of their own and tied the set at eight a piece. In the middle of the set, it was a back-and-forth match, until the Pride capitalized on UNCW’s errors. Hofstra pulled out the set victory with major contributions from Garvin, who led the Pride with four kills.
Set two was a nail bitter as the scores were tied 14 times throughout the set. A tie score of 21 was broken when UNCW took the lead with a kill and service ace from Ursem. This gave the Seahawks enough momentum to drive home the win at 25-22.
Hofstra bounced back in set three with a 25-17 win. Out of the gate, Hofstra was looking for redemption from the prior set and found themselves with a large lead. The Pride displayed their diverse offensive talent. In this set Cinel and Clara Bal each contributed four kills, while Stedile had three. The Pride also put up two service aces.
Four early kills gave the Pride a large lead in set four, but UNCW was not going down without a fight. When down by ten, the Seahawks went on a five-point run with two kills from Grace Melnick and one from Emma Chappell. The Pride regrouped and earned two points on two kills from Stedile. UNCW continued to fight when Macy Leyda delivered two back-to-back kills. Her kills were not enough to save the Seahawks, and the Pride wrapped the final set up with a 25-19 victory on a game-ending service error.
Hofstra faces the University of Delaware on Saturday, Oct. 26, at the David S. Mack Physical Education Center. Match time is set for 4 p.m.
Photo courtesy of Ethan Albin
