WILMINGTON, NC — The Hofstra volleyball team won their second consecutive match Saturday, Nov. 9 as they defeated UNC-Wilmington (UNCW) at Hanover Hall with set scores of 20-25, 25-16, 16-25, 25-21 and 15-11.
The Pride rallied back from a 2-1 to defeat the Hawks for their fifth win in their last six matches. Hofstra improved to 16-9 overall and 9-4 in Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) play while UNCW dropped to 14-13 and 4-10 in conference play. Laura Masciullo tallied 24 kills to move into second place all time in kills for the Pride with 1,678, passing Lena Malinowski, who tallied 1,654 kills from 1994-1998.
Hofstra got off to a slow start in the first set but kept the score close early on. Both teams went back and forth until the Pride began to break away when they went on a 5-0 run. Hofstra used that run to go ahead 18-13, but UNCW fought back. The Hawks caught fire and won 12 of the next 14 rallies to win 25-20 and take a 1-0 lead in the match.
The Pride rebounded in set two and dominated the Hawks en route to a 25-16 victory. After losing the first point, Hofstra never trailed again and went on a 12-0 run to lead 20-7. Hofstra did not look back and evened the match at one a piece with ease.
The third set was much different for the Pride, as they could not keep their momentum going from the second set and lost 25-16. UNCW looked like a completely different team and gave Hofstra a taste of their own medicine.
The Hawks used a 11-1 tear to go in front 10-3. They did not stop there and took their largest lead of the afternoon at 23-11 after Katie Lanz’s sixth kill of the match. Lanz struck again and finished off the Pride with another kill to give UNCW a 2-1 lead in the match.
Hofstra responded once again and evened the match at two with a 25-21 victory in the fourth set. After trailing 8-7, the Pride took back the momentum and never fell behind again. They got some breathing room after an attack error by Kendall Brender gave them a 19-15 lead and Hofstra overcame the 2-1 deficit to force a fifth set.
The Pride capped off their comeback with a 15-11 win in the final set. Luz Divina Nunez Sierra tallied two straight kills to help the Pride back from an early hole and take a 7-4 lead. The Hawks did not surrender and tied the score back at nine. Two consecutive UNCW attack errors from Lanz gave Hofstra the lead once again and the Pride used a 6-2 run to win the match.
Hofstra fought back from a 1-0 and 2-1 deficit to win their second straight match over UNCW, improving to 29-7 all-time in the matchup.
Besides Masciullo, Hofstra was led by Luisa Sydlik’s 49 assists and Juliana Vaz’s 27 digs. They will look to win their third straight match on Monday, Nov. 11 when they travel to South Carolina to take on College of Charleston at 7 p.m.
Photo courtesy of Hofstra Athletics
