NEW HAVEN, CT – As non-conference play continued Saturday, the Queens College volleyball team competed in their fourth tri-match of the season as they matched up against NE10 foes Le Moyne College Dolphins and host Southern Connecticut State University Owls at Pelz Gym.
Led by freshman
Kendall Conrad (Carrolltown, PA) and sophomore
Christina Franco (Lynbrook, N.Y.) combined 31 kills, the Knights swept the Dolphins 3-0
(Set Scores: 25-23, 27-25, 25-16). Against the Owls, the Knights took a 2-0 set lead but would drop match two of the afternoon in five-sets to the score of 3-2
(Set Scores: 27-25, 25-23, 16-25, 19-25, 9-15).
Le Moyne Match Recap (Final Score 3-0 | Sets 25-23, 27-25, 25-16)
It was a back-and-forth first set as both sides exchanged leads. With the Dolphins leading 7-4, Conrad and Franco combined for a 6-1 run as Queens took a 10-8 lead.
Despite the Knights maintaining a slim lead, the Dolphins continued to stay within distance before a 6-2 run put Queens up 21-15. Errors would keep the Dolphins within the game as a 23-17 advantage was brought down to 24-23 before Franco ended the first set with a kill for a 25-23 victory.
The second set would be another see-saw battle as the Knights answered each Dolphins run with their own. Trailing 23-20 and the Dolphins looking to tie the match, Conrad and freshman
Ryann Frontera (Dripping Springs, TX) led the rally for the Knights to tie second 24-24.
After a kill put the Dolphins up 25-24, Franco and sophomore
Alicia Cervera Sospedra (Valencia, Spain) combined for three kills to take the second set 27-25 and a 2-0 lead.
Queens opened the third set on a 5-0 run and never let up. Franco and Conrad combined for 11 kills as the Dolphins hit -.023 in the third set as Queens swept Le Moyne 3-0 with a 25-16 third set victory.
Match Highlights
- Conrad tallied a career-high 17 kills hitting .424 over the three sets.
- Franco notched her second double-double of the season with 14 kills and 15 digs.
- Sophomore Despina Boudouris (Athens, Greece) tallied season-high 39 assists, falling one short of tying her career-best 40 assists. She would notch her second double-double with a season-high 14 digs.
- With the 3-0 victory, Queens ended a three-game losing streak to the Dolphins, with the last win coming during the 2008 season as the Knights won 3-1 in Pelz Gym.
SCSU Match Recap (Final Score 2-3 | Sets 27-25, 25-23, 16-25, 19-25, 9-15)
The Knights came out strong in the first set as they took a 4-2 lead before the Owls fought back to cut into the score.
Franco and Conrad combined for three kills as Queens extended their advantage to 17-10. But with the Knights leading by seven, errors would allow the Owls to come back and tie the first set 18-18. Both sides would exchange points before two kills by senior
Alexis Deodat (Tampa Bay, FL) put the Knights one point away from clinching the first set with a 24-21 lead.
But the Owls fought back with a 4-0 run to take a 25-24 lead as they looked to steal the first set. After an Owls attacking error tied the first 25-25, Conrad tallied her fourth kill of the set before a double block from Deodat and Cervera gave Queens a 1-0 lead with a 27-25 first set victory.
The second set would be another see-saw battle before the Knights found themselves trailing 10-7. But five combined errors would see the lead change before Conrad led a 4-0 run for the Knights to take a 14-12 lead.
With Queens leading 15-13, a 7-3 run by the Owls saw them take a 20-18 advantage before a kill by Deodat led to a 4-1 charge and take a 22-21 lead.
After a Knights service error tied the second set, a kill by Franco put the Knights up 23-22 before Conrad closed the second set with her third kill of the set for a 25-23 win and a commanding 2-0 lead.
Queens came out of rhythm in the third as they fell behind 12-4 and never recovered. The Owls would hit .345 compared to the Knights' .067 in the third set as the Owls cut the deficit down to 2-1 with a 25-16 victory.
Led by Deodat in the middle, Queens jumped out to a 10-5 lead in the fourth set. But three Knights errors would allow the Owls to tie the fourth set 10-10 before a kill by Cervera put them up 11-10.
With the Knights leading 14-13, a 7-1 run by the Owls would give the home side the advantage they needed to take the fourth set with a 25-19 victory and tie the match 2-2.
Playing their second five-setter of the season, Queens came out of rhythm as the Owls took a 3-0 lead. Cervera and Conrad would bring the Knights within one, 5-3 but Knights errors would continue to hurt them as they were forced to earn a Saturday afternoon split in Pelz Gym with a fifth set 15-9 loss.
Match Highlights
- Franco led the way with her third straight double-double as the sophomore tallied a team-high 14 kills and 17 digs.
- For the fourth straight match, Conrad touched double digits in kills notching 12 kills.
- Cervera tallied a career-high 13 kills and nine digs in the match.
- Boudouris notched a match-high 37 assists and 11 digs for her second straight double-double and third of the season.
- Off the bench rookie Sarah Munn (Torrance, CA) sparked the offense as she tied a career-best 11 digs
- Frontera notched 23 digs and a career-best seven assists on the day.
UP NEXT: Head Coach
Stefan Leger and his Knights continue their road trip on Tuesday (Sept. 13) evening as they travel to Pleasantville, N.Y. with a matchup against the Setters of Pace University. First serve is set for 7:00 P.M.
For the latest news on Queens College Athletics, follow the Knights at queensknights.com or via social media on Facebook (Queens College Athletics), Twitter (@QCKnights), and Instagram (qcknightsny), women's volleyball (qcknightsvb).
