In a clash for the top of the Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) rankings, the Hofstra University volleyball team defeated Towson University in a thrilling five-set match on Friday, Nov. 15. The victory marked the 200th career win for Hofstra head coach Emily Mansur.
Both teams entered the match in a four-way tie for the best record in the CAA. After the win, Hofstra stayed atop of the conference along with the College of Charleston and the University of Delaware with a record of 14-3 while Towson moves to 13-4 in CAA play.
The Pride dominated in all aspects of the match against Towson. Clara Bal made her return to the floor in exciting fashion, putting up a match-high 16 kills. Izadora Stedile remained sharp on both sides of the ball, recording 15 kills, 12 digs and four blocks. Constanza Perez Sain and Iyanna Garvin put up 14 and 10 kills, respectively.
The Pride’s defense was led by Chiara Cucco, who put up 17 digs on the day. Garvin and Emilly Nunes slowed the Tiger’s offense with strong blocking for a total of 11 block assists.
Beatriz Alves and Ellie Pamatat continued to provide the Pride with stellar play at the setter position, with both of them recording a double-double. Pamatat led Hofstra with 26 assists and 10 digs while Alves added 25 assists and 12 digs of her own.
Towson established an early lead over the Pride, capitalizing on 14 errors while racking up 10 kills to bring the opening set to 25-17.
Not only did the Tigers find success offensively, but they were also able to slow Hofstra’s attacks with four blocks.
The Pride bounced back with a dominant second set. Garvin broke an early 3-3 tie, starting a three-point rally for the Pride. This gave Hofstra the momentum to explode on offense.
Stedile recorded five set kills while Perez Sain and Garvin each put up four. The offensive barrage helped the Pride finish on a 13-4 run, taking the set 25-14 and tying the match at one set apiece.
Hofstra lost an early 10-5 lead in the third set as Ylenia De Mango’s third and fourth kills of the match sparked a three-point run for the Tigers to take a 13-12 lead.
The Pride’s offense took off after falling behind 16-14. Stedile sparked a five-point run to regain the lead as The Pride took six of the final seven points in the set for a 25-18 victory.
The Tigers forced a fifth set with a late rally. Hofstra had a strong middle of the set, with a five-point run to go ahead 17-14, but a Towson timeout allowed for the adjustments needed to erase the deficit.
With the set tied at 22, Towson continued to roll with back-to-back kills to force set-point. A kill from Stedile made things interesting, but the Tigers closed out the set 25-23 with a kill from Victoria Barrett.
An explosive winner-take-all fifth set sealed the match victory for the Pride.
Towson struck first with an opening kill, but Hofstra answered with one of their own as both teams went back-and-fourth. A match-turning kill from Bal started a 3-0 run to give the Pride some breathing room. Towson fought back, but could only get within a point on five different occasions as Perez Sain held off the Tigers with three straight kills in the middle of the set.
Towson tried, yet again, to tie the match, but kills from Bal and Nunes clinched the 15-12 win.
The two teams finished up the regular season in the second match of the series on Saturday, Nov. 16. Match time was set for 3:30 p.m.
Photo courtesy of Ethan Albin
