The Stony Brook volleyball team ended their weekend at the Saint Francis Tournament in Loreto, PA with a straight-set victory over Manhattan, followed by a defeat in the five-set thriller to Saint Francis (PA) on Sept. 2.
Setter Torri Henry was garnished to the All-Tournament Team for the 2023 Red Flash Classic after finishing her weekend with 133 assists (49,33,51), 22 digs, eight kills, and four aces in three matches.
In their first set of the afternoon, the Seawolves came out firing from the service line by tallying five aces to ultimately take the set. After trailing 15-12, Stony Brook stormed back to score 9 of the next points to take the 21-16 lead. Madison Cigna notched two assists and Leoni Kunz and Abby Campbell each tallied two kills to push the run. Ashleigh Woodruff ended the set with a kill to secure the 25-22 first set victory.
Stony Brook wasted no time in the second set as they jumped out to a 5-1 lead after the Seawolves tallied four consecutive kills, including two by Abby Stanwood. The Jaspers did cut the deficit to 7-6, but the squad tallied 12 of the next 16 points to ultimately take the second set, 25-15.
To complete the sweep, Stony Brook leaped to a 10-3 lead to begin the set and did not look back. The Seawolves ended the set by claiming its biggest lead, 12 points, to close out the Jaspers, 25-13, and finish off the sweep.
Looking to bounce back following the 25-20 defeat in the opening set against the Friars, Stony Brook led by as many as nine points at 15-6 before finishing off the second set with a 25-20 victory, totaling 15 kills in the process. Stony Brook’s front row led by Campbell, Henry, and Moore had a spectacular defensive performance, blocking four Saint Francis (PA) attacks in the stanza.
Stony Brook built on that second-set success with a 25-11 win in set number three to open up a lead at two sets to one. The Seawolves led from the first point on to secure the 25-11 victory. The squad claimed its biggest lead, 14 points, to close out the set after recording five blocks and three aces during the stretch.
Following the 25-20 defeat in the fourth set to force a deciding fifth set, the Seawolves took an early 4-3 lead after Moore tallied one of her team-high 24 kills. Saint Francis (PA) and Stony Brook went back-and-forth to force a 15-15 tie, but the Friars would tally three of the final four points to take the set 18-16 and ultimately the match in five sets.
MATCH 1: STONY BROOK – 3, MANHATTAN – 0 (25-22, 25-15, 25-13)
- Moore had a match-high three aces in the win.
- Stony Brook served up five aces on the way to a first-set victory.
- Stony Brook never trailed in the second or third set.
- Stanwood had a match-high and new career-high 14 kills for Stony Brook.
- Stony Brook got a match-high five digs from Moore.
- Stony Brook attackers were helped by a match-high 33 assists from Henry.
- Stony Brook is now 9-6 all-time against Manhattan.
MATCH 2: STONY BROOK 2 – , SAINT FRANCIS (PA) – 3 (20-25, 25-20, 25-11, 20-25, 16-18)
- Stony Brook had three players in double figures in digs (Patsos, Henry, and Moore)
- Henry had a match-high three aces in the loss.
- Moore registered a double-double with 24 kills and 10 digs. It was the most kills by any Seawolf this season and a new career-best for the sophomore.
- Stony Brook never trailed on the way to winning the third set 25-11.
- Stony Brook got a match-high 17 digs from Julia Patsos. She now has 10 or more digs in four of the six matches this season.
- Stony Brook attackers were helped by a match-high and season-high 51 assists from Henry. It was her most since she had 53 against Fordham on August 28, 2022.
- The Seawolves are now 7-1 all-time against Saint Francis.
- Tonight marks the first time this season that the Seawolves played five sets.
“While the results from this weekend aren’t fully what we wanted, I am seeing good growth in our group, especially as we’re still tinkering with the lineup. It was great to bounce back and get a sweep of Manhattan. I’m happy with our group’s fight in the second match of the day but we need to play a cleaner game to finish the job. We are excited to compete in front of our home crowd on Wednesday and look forward to a packed Pritchard,” said head coach Kristin Belzung.
NEXT UP
Stony Brook will return to the court on Wednesday as they host Columbia University inside Pritchard Gymnasium for their first home match of the season. The Seawolves are looking to continue their success against the Lions, as they are 6-2 all-time against the Ivy League opponent. The matchup is set to begin at 6:31 p.m. and can be streamed on FloSports!
