Volleyball Struggles at New Haven, Falls 3-0
New Haven, Conn. – The Merrimack volleyball team struggled all night and were unable to pick up a victory as they were downed in straight sets, 3-0. New haven extends their winning streak to eight straight matches as Merrimack falls to 3-12 (0-3 NE-10).
Game scores against New Haven: 25-20, 25-22, 25-16.
The Warriors hung tough in set one as the two teams were tied at 17, but they were unable to pull out the victory against the streaking Chargers. Jackie Jones (Amherst, N.H.) led the way in set one with five kills and four digs for the Warriors. Junior setter Brianna Trabucco (Canton, MA) contributed with a set-high 12 assists.
Set two was another tightly contested set as New Haven pulled out the narrow 25-22 victory over the young Warriors. Merrimack tied up the set at 22 but they were unable to come up with a point as New Haven outscored the Warriors 3-0 to win the set. Freshman outside hitter
Stephanie Sheehan (Smithtown, NY) played well in set two as she compiled a team-high four kills in the loss.
Set three was dominated by the Chargers as they went on to the 25-16 victory for the sweep. New Haven never trailed in set three as Merrimack was unable to fend off the Chargers attack. Junior
Nicole Duarte (Windham, N.H.) played well in the final set as she recorded a team-high three kills.
The Warriors were led on the night by Trabucco who recorded 24 assists and two kills. Offensively Jones, Duarte and Sheehan recorded a team-high seven kills on the night.
Allison Cote (Chelmsford, MA) led the way defensively as she had a team-high eight digs for the Warriors.
The Chargers were given strong performances by many players as Amber Cannady tallied a match-high 15 kills, Keidy Candelaria recorded 11 digs and seven kills and Kristy Atufunwa had eight kills.
"We played a good match, we just need to play with a little more urgency," said head coach TJ Hajjar. "If we learn to play with more urgency we will be able to make strides as a team and be more successful in the long run."
Merrimack (3-12, 0-3 NE-10) will return home for a conference tilt against Stonehill on Tuesday, October 4 at 7 p.m.
