BOSTON, MASS. — The Hofstra Pride volleyball team rolled past the Northeastern Huskies on the road, winning three sets to one on Saturday, Nov. 2.
The Pride got ahead of Northeastern early, winning set one 25-18 and set two 25-23. The Huskies then rallied in front of their home crowd as Hofstra lost set three 20-25. But the Pride would ultimately prevail in set four 25-23, completing yet another Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) road win.
Northeastern controlled the pace to start out, as Hofstra trailed 3-6 at the start of the first set. The Pride rallied back with help from dominant play by senior Luisa Sydlik and junior Ana Martinovic to take a 17-13 lead. The team would not look back after that, as junior Sanne Maring delivered the finishing kill to win set one 25-18. Hofstra easily handled the first set, hitting at a .355 clip.
The Pride was given a greater challenge in the second set, as they found themselves trailing 8-15. The team would not falter and found a way to tie the score 18-18 with dominant play from Laura Masciullo. Down the stretch it was neck-and-neck as neither team found a lead and the set was tied late at 22. Sydlik, Maring and Luz Divina Nunez Sierra would eventually take over and help the Pride close out the set 25-23.
The Huskies fought back during the third set, as they had not yet held a lead. The Pride found themselves down 7-15 after a service error by Martinovic, and were unable to pick things up from there. Samantha Shupe had the finishing kill and the Huskies got their revenge, defeating the Pride 25-20.
The final set was another close affair for the Pride as the team looked to wrap things up at Solomon Court. Hofstra held a 17-10 lead after more strong play by Nunez Sierra left the Huskies scrambling. After a strong effort by Northeastern, the Pride found themselves in another tight situation, tied at 23. However, a kill from Nunez Sierra and a block by Masciullo helped close out the set, as well as the match.
After the win the Pride improves to a 15-9 record, 8-4 in CAA play, as they look to make a strong run to close out the regular season. The team looked promising with 57 kills, 53 assists, five aces and 10 blocks in the contest.
The Pride received strong contributions across the board from some of its key players. Martinovic managed 13 kills and one block, Masciullo had 12 kills, four blocks and one ace, Athina Dimitriadis tallied nine kills and one block and Nunez Sierra contributed nine kills and four blocks.
The Pride is now 45-13 all time against Northeastern, continuing to control the all-time matchup. With four games remaining in the regular season, the Pride is only one match behind James Madison University for the second seed in the CAA. Next, the team travels to Wilmington, North Carolina to take on UNC-Wilmington on Saturday, Nov. 9, at 1 p.m.
Image courtesy of Hofstra Athletics
