DOBBS FERRY, N.Y. (Oct. 23, 2021) – Powered by a match-high 11 kills from senior Nilka Rivera Maldonado (Bayamon, P.R./Concordia College), the Mercy College volleyball team earned a 3-0 (25-21, 25-15, 25-17) win over ECC foe Roberts Wesleyan College in their Dig Pink Match on Saturday afternoon at Victory Hall Gymnasium.
The Mavericks (10-12, 5-2 ECC) have won two of their last three matches and sweep the season series with the Redhawks (1-17, 0-7 ECC).
Rivera Maldonado had 11 kills and five digs and junior Larissa Schneid (Sao Paulo, Brazil/Iowa Western CC) had 10 kills and three aces. Junior Yarianne Gonzalez (Manati, P.R./Monroe College) had a team-high 20 assists and senior Selma Vulic (New Rochelle, N.Y./New Rochelle) had a team-high 10 digs. Senior Sophia Flanders (Hamden, Conn./Hamden) had 13 assists and junior Stéphanie Lankhorst (Apeldoorn, Netherlands/Koninklijke Scholengemeenschap Apeldoorn) and sophomore Jessica Angounou (Phoenix, Ariz./Betty H. Fairfax) had six kills.
Roberts Wesleyan was led by Emily Rowlison who had eight kills.
Mercy jumped out to a 7-4 lead in set one after a Tynesha Adams (Prattville, Ala./Bethune Cookman University) block. A Rivera Maldonado ace later made it 9-5 before the Redhawks went on an 8-4 run to tie the set at 13-13. The teams traded two points apiece to make it 15-15. Roberts Wesleyan later took a 17-16 lead, but the Mavericks rattled off six straight points, capped off by a Cristy Encarnacion (St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands/Alcorn State University) kill, to give Mercy a 22-17 lead. The Redhawks got within three, 24-21, but an attack error gave Mercy the first set, 25-21.
The Redhawks held a 7-6 lead in set two. However, the Mavericks answered with six straight points to take a 12-7 lead. Roberts Wesleyan later cut the Mercy lead to four, 17-13, but the Mavericks rallied with four straight points to take a 21-13 lead. Adams finished off the set with a kill to give Mercy the 25-15 set two win.
Mercy took a 7-2 lead in set three after a Schneid ace. Roberts Wesleyan made it 17-14 in favor of the Mavericks before Mercy went on a 7-1 run to increase their lead to 24-15. The Redhawks scored two unanswered to make it 24-17 before Rivera Maldonado closed the set out with a kill to give Mercy the win.
Mercy had 40 kills, 31 digs, 35 assists, eight blocks, six aces and hit .344. Roberts Wesleyan had 36 kills, 36 digs, 34 assists, three blocks, four aces and hit .179.
Head Coach Gary Preston Jr. and the Mavericks resume action on Tuesday, October 26th when they play at Molloy at 7 p.m.
