White Smacks 35 Kills Over Matches Against Merrimack and AIC
Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 DOBBS FERRY, N.Y. (Oct. 27, 2012) – Sophomore outside hitter Brenna White (Gardnerville, Nev.) smacked a combined 35 kills over seven sets between matches against Merrimack College and American International College in a tri-match on Saturday afternoon.
Mercy dropped the first match of the day to Merrimack, 3-0, the finale to AIC, 3-1, while AIC pulled out a five-set Northeast 10 thriller over Merrimack in between. Mercy's record now stands at 3-22 overall and 0-12 in East Coast Conference play, while Merrimack stands at 9-16 (1-9 NE-10) and AIC is 14-11 (6-5).
Mercy 0, Merrimack 3
Mercy had trouble getting the offense to fire on all cylinders in the first match, posing only a .078 hitting percentage to Merrimack's impressive .326.
The Mavericks picked up a slight early edge in the first set and extended it to as much as 17-13 before the Warriors rattled off a 9-3 run to go up 22-20 and held the margin to the 25-23 victory. Merrimack gained the early edge in the second set and after tying things up at 8-8, Mercy could not get back in and fell, 25-20, to go down 2-0 in the match. The Warriors stormed out to a 6-1 lead in the third set and never looked back, closing the match out at 25-19.
White led the match with 17 kills and tied her career-high with 1.5 total blocks while sophomore setter McKenna Ronan (Chandler, Ariz.) made 26 assists and junior libero Kirstie Zubiate (Salinas, Calif.) recorded 11 digs.
Junior outside hitter Jackie Jones (Amherst, N.H.) led the Warriors with 11 kills and tied for the team lead with four block assists while sophomore setter Allison Cote (Chelmsford, Mass.) just missed a double-double with 33 assists and nine digs.
Mercy 1, AIC 3
After taking the exhilarating five-set conference bout over Merrimack in the second match of the day, AIC took the court again versus host Mercy. The Mavericks got off to a slow start in the first set, falling behind 5-0 and eventually losing 25-17 as White recorded only one kill and sophomore right-side hitter Vanessa Ruiz (West Springfield, Mass.) served up four consecutive aces, but picked up their game in the second set. The teams traded points until late in the set, when Mercy broke a 17-17 tie with an 8-2 run to level the match at 1-1.
Mercy carried its momentum into the third set to the tune of an early 9-5 lead, but AIC stormed back to tie the set at 14-14 and eventually broke a 20-20 deadlock with five of the final six points. Sophomore right-side hitter Phoebe Lettington (Irvine, Calif.) served up a trio of early aces in the fourth set as the Yellow Jackets went up 9-5. The Mavericks nearly matched AIC's feat in the prior set, tying things up at 12-12, but they could not keep up and fell, 25-15, top drop the match.
White again led the match in kills, this time hitting 18, and added a team-high 12 digs for her eighth double-double of the season while junior outside hitter Nicolette Gebhardt (Pine Bush, N.Y.) added 10 kills. Ronan made 37 assists and Zubiate recorded another 11 digs.
Junior middle blocker Blair Havron (Pukalani, Hawaii) led the Yellow Jackets with 10 kills while senior setter Kervelle Redhead (St. James, Trinidad & Tobago) posted a double-double with 37 assists and 11 digs. Freshman libero Franny Sanchez (Ossining, N.Y.) added 10 digs while Lettington made a match-high 3.5 total blocks with five service aces, while Ruiz finished with six aces.
Head Coach Taneisha Cantave and the Mavericks will host the conference-leading University of Bridgeport (18-4, 10-1) on Tuesday, Oct. 30 at 7:00 p.m. The team will also be celebrating DIG PINK Breast Cancer Awareness Night.
