FLUSHING, N.Y. (Oct. 5, 2021) – Powered by a match-high 16 digs from senior Sophia Flanders (Hamden, Conn./Hamden) and a match-high nine kills from Stéphanie Lankhorst (Apeldoorn, Netherlands/Koninklijke Scholengemeenschap Apeldoorn), the Mercy College volleyball team earned a 3-0 (25-20, 25-21, 25-12) victory over ECC foe Queens College on Tuesday night at Fitzgerald Gymnasium.
The Mavericks (7-7, 3-0 ECC) start 3-0 in ECC play for the first time since 2005 and are off to their best 14-match start since 2005. The Knights (2-11, 1-3 ECC) have dropped six straight matches to Mercy.
Flanders had 16 digs and Lankhorst had nine kills. Senior Nilka Rivera Maldonado (Bayamon, P.R./Concordia College) had eight kills and junior Ayzaline Garay (San Juan, P.R./Bronx School of Law, Government and Justice) had 13 digs. Senior Tynesha Adams (Prattville, Ala./Bethune Cookman University) had six kills and three blocks and junior Larissa Schneid (Sao Paulo, Brazil/Iowa Western CC) had six kills and 11 digs. Junior Yarianne Gonzalez (Manati, P.R./Monroe College) added 25 assists and seven digs.
Queens was led by Christina Franco who had a team-high eight kills.
The opening set saw the hosts take a 2-1 lead, but Mercy stormed back on a 12-2 run to take a 13-4 lead. The Mavericks later held a 20-11 lead after an Adams kill before the Knights clawed their way back and made it 24-20. However, a kill by Schneid gave Mercy the set, 25-20.
Mercy scored the first six points of the second set. Queens went on an 8-2 run to tie the set at 8-8. The set was later tied at 10-10 before the Mavericks rattled off four straight points to take a 14-10 lead. Queens cut the deficit to two, 18-16, but Mercy followed with three straight points to take a 21-16 lead. The Knights later made it 24-21, but another Schneid kill gave Mercy the set, 25-21.
The Mavericks opened the third set with a 12-2 lead after a Selma Vulic (New Rochelle, N.Y./New Rochelle) ace. Mercy cruised the rest of the way and Lankhorst finished off the set and match with a kill to give the Mavericks a 25-12 set three win.
Mercy had 33 kills, 59 digs, 29 assists, five blocks, six aces and hit .143. Queens had 19 kills, 48 digs, 17 assists, three blocks, seven aces and hit .000.
Head Coach Gary Preston Jr. and the Mavericks resume action on Saturday, October 9th when they host Daemen at 12 p.m.
