When and Where: October 15, 2021 – Manchester, N.H. (Stan Spirou Field House)
Score: Stonehill College 3, Southern New Hampshire University 2
Records: SNHU 7-7 (3-2 NE10), Stonehill 13-5 (3-0 NE10)
Juniors
Dai Thawnghmung (Lowell, Mass.) and
Juliana Pacini (Sao Paulo, Brazil) recorded 16 and 15 kills, respectively, but the Southern New Hampshire University women's volleyball team suffered a grueling, 3-2 loss to red-hot Stonehill College on Friday evening at the Stan Spirou Field House. Set scores were 25-19, 19-25, 16-25, 26-24, 21-19.
STANDOUT PERFORMERS
- Thawnghmung – 16 kills, 1 ace, 6 blocks, career-high 23 digs
- Pacini – 15 kills, 1 ace, career-high 19 digs, 2 blocks
- Freshman Carmen Bernardis (Trieste, Italy) – career-high 11 kills, .333 hitting, 6 digs, 2 blocks
- Senior Ramona Fontaine (Chelsea, Mass.) – 9 kills, .294 hitting, 8 blocks
- Senior Grace Pierce (Fairfax, Va.) – 8 kills, 4 blocks, 3 digs
- Graduate student Sara Montefameglio (Turin, Italy) – 34 assists, 2 aces, 11 digs
- Freshman Deanne Wilson (Buffalo, N.Y.) – 16 digs
KEY MOMENTS
- Trailing, 1-0, in the match and, 16-15, in the second set, Southern New Hampshire scored 10 of the final 13 points of the frame, as five different Penmen chipped in a kill to even the match.
- SNHU was behind, 7-5, in the third when it reeled off eight straight, with Pacini submitting three kills and Thawnghmung adding five, to put the hosts in front by six. The Penmen were up, 15-13, when they again scored 10 of the final 13 to take a 2-1 advantage in the match. Thawnghmung tallied two kills and an ace during the stretch, while Fontaine also turned in a pair of kills.
- The Penmen owned a 17-10 lead in the fourth as it looked to close out Stonehill, but the Skyhawks notched 12 of the next 18 points to claw within 23-22. A Thawnghmung kill put the Penmen a point away from taking the match, but Stonehill responded by reeling off four straight to force a fifth set.
- In the final frame, Stonehill held a 15-14 edge and was on the verge of winning the match, but SNHU staved off elimination on four match points, eventually tying the match at 19-all, before back-to-back kills gave Stonehill the win.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Junior Ainsley Knox (Houston, Texas) chipped in 19 assists, an ace and six digs.
- Junior Kam Blaskey (Ventura, Calif.) posted four kills and five digs.
- SNHU outhit Stonehill in the second, third and fifth sets, as well as .204-.153 for the match.
- The Penmen held advantages in blocks (12-8) and aces (5-4).
NOTES
- SNHU's 7-7 start to the season matches its same record through 14 contests in the 2019 campaign.
- Stonehill has now won 13 of its last 14 matches, including eight straight.
- The Skyhawks, who defeated SNHU, 3-2, back on Sept. 11 and 3-0 Oct. 2, have now captured 15 of the last 17 meetings with the Penmen.
WHAT'S NEXT
- The Penmen return to action Tuesday, Oct. 19 (7 p.m.) when they take on Saint Michael's College.
- The next home contest for SNHU is Saturday, Oct. 23 (4 p.m.) when it plays host to the University of New Haven at the Stan Spirou Field House.
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