FLUSHING, N.Y. – Returning home for their lone match of the week, the Queens College women's volleyball team welcomed the Georgian Court University Lions to Fitzgerald Gymnasium for a non-conference tilt Thursday evening.
In a match that went the distance and featured 25 ties and 17 lead changes, the Knights received a balanced effort as Queens combined for 46 kills, 13 service aces and nine blocks. The rookie duo of
Zoe Sercu and
Mikayla Haskell combined for 30 kills, four service aces, four blocks and 13 digs, with Sercu recording her third career double-double while Haskell posted a career-best 15 kills on a .433 hitting percentage as Queens earned a thrilling five-set victory over the Lions.
With the victory, Queens earns its second win of the season, snapping an 11-match slide, while earning its 10th all-time victory over Georgian Court to even the series at 10-10.
Match Recap
Both sides traded points early in the first set before the set was tied at 6-6. Georgian Court then took an 8-6 lead before Queens put together an 8-0 run, with junior
Asuka Shibue notching three straight service aces to put the Knights ahead 14-8 and force a Georgian Court timeout.
The timeout would break the momentum as the Lions put together a 5-2 run to cut the deficit to three, 16-13.
Georgian Court continued to stay within striking distance before the rookie trio of
Garnette Webb,
Jaslynn Daily and Sercu combined for two kills and a service ace as Queens extended its advantage to 22-17.
The Lions answered back with a 6-0 run to take a 23-22 lead. With the visitors threatening to steal the opening set, rookie
Lucia Bennett and Haskell combined for three kills as Queens rallied back to take the first set, 25-23.
Once again, Georgian Court jumped ahead early in the second set, taking a 6-5 lead before a kill from Webb sparked a 5-0 run and forced a Lions timeout.
Out of the break, Webb recorded her second block of the set as Queens took an 11-6 lead.
The visitors put together a rally and were able to claw back within one on several occasions. But with the Knights' lead down to one, 14-13, a Lions service error sparked an 11-2 run as Queens took a 2-0 match lead with a 25-15 second-set victory. The trio of Sercu, Haskell and Bennett combined for eight kills in the second set as Queens hit .207.
The Lions would not go away quietly, however, as they rallied to force a fifth set for the second consecutive match against the Knights. In the third set, Queens was limited to a .071 hitting percentage while Georgian Court hit .280 with 11 kills and three service aces as the Lions earned a 25-15 third-set victory to cut the Knights' match lead to 2-1.
In the fourth set, the opening 27 points were a battle between both sides as they combined for 13 kills. With the Knights trailing 15-12, Queens called timeout to break the momentum.
Trailing 16-12, Haskell recorded her fourth kill of the set before delivering a service ace to bring Queens within two, 16-14. But the Lions responded with a 5-0 run, using three service aces to build a 21-14 lead.
Georgian Court would not surrender the advantage, earning a 25-18 fourth-set victory to tie the match at 2-2 and force a decisive fifth set.
Looking to end their 11-match slide, the trio of Haskell, junior
Olivia Hyman and Sercu helped Queens start the fifth set with a 4-1 lead. Georgian Court responded with a 6-2 run to take a 7-6 edge, but Sercu used a kill and a service ace to put Queens ahead 8-7 heading into the media timeout.
Out of the timeout, the Lions tied the set at 8-8 before three Georgian Court errors and a kill from Haskell helped Queens take a 12-8 lead.
The Lions used a kill to cut the advantage to three, 12-9, before Haskell and Bennett combined for back-to-back kills to give the Knights match point at 14-9.
However, the Lions would not go away without a fight as they scored four straight points to cut the advantage to 14-13. A Lions service error, their 11th of the match, would then seal the hard-fought five-set victory for Queens.
BY THE NUMBERS
- Sercu recorded her third career double-double with a match-tying 15 kills and 13 digs, adding one service ace and one block.
- Haskell posted a career-best 15 kills while hitting a scorching .433, adding three blocks and two service aces.
- Bennett tallied seven kills and one dig.
- Webb recorded five kills and a career-best six blocks.
- Rookie Kaiya Banks posted a career-best 24 assists to go with five digs, two service aces and two kills.
- Daily recorded 17 assists, seven digs, two kills and one service ace.
- Shibue notched a team-high 20 digs, along with three service aces and two assists.
- Hyman added a team-best four service aces and seven digs.
NEXT SERVE
Queens opens a three-match roadstand on Tuesday, Sept. 22, traveling to Pleasantville, N.Y., for a non-conference tilt against Pace University. First serve is set for 7 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), X (Formerly Twitter) (@QCKnights), and Instagram (qcknightsny), women's volleyball (qcknightsvb).
