Box Score BRIDGEPORT, Conn. (Oct. 20, 2015) – The Molloy College volleyball team scratched and clawed out a dogged effort in Bridgeport on Tuesday evening, but the Lions could not upset the top team in the conference as the maroon and white fell to the University of Bridgeport in three sets. Game scores from Hubbell Gymnasium favored the Purple Knights 25-20, 25-23 and 25-19. Bridgeport improves to 16-7 overall and an unblemished 9-0 in conference competition, while Molloy falls to 4-17 in the fall campaign and 2-7 in ECC play.
The maroon and white held a 6-4 lead in the first set by scoring four unanswered points to rebound from an early 4-2 deficit. After senior outside hitter
Cassie Palmer (Norwalk, Calif.) collected a kill to bring the Lions within one, junior middle hitter
Spencer Williams (Los Angeles, Calif.) launched a service ace off of Bridgeport's Katarina Krstonosic (Kikinda, Serbia) to even the set at four. Following converted attacks by Palmer and freshman outside hitter
Jeanne Reinis (Santa Fe Springs, Calif.), Molloy had a lead over an unbeaten Bridgeport squad. The advantage could not hold, though, as Bridgeport leveled the score at 7 on a Molloy miscue. From there, the Purple Knights went to work by scoring the next five points to open up a considerable lead. Krstonosic leveled consecutive kills before junior outside hitter Sara Cruz (Belo Horizonte, Brazil) burned the Lions with two straight service aces and freshman setter Ellie Rich (Highlands Ranch, Colo.) converted a kill to make the score favor UB, 12-7.
Molloy showed great fight in the opening stanza by chipping away at the lead to get within two at 16-14. Alas, the game of rallies once again turned to the defending conference champions as Jade Zhao (Huhhot, China) and Frida Randen (Sodertalje, Sweden) notched kills before libero Amelie Guinci (Cannes, France) fired home a service ace to put the Purple Knights further ahead, 21-14. Molloy again rallied back as kills by junior middle blocker
Grace Cookson (San Diego, Calif.) made the score 22-18 and 24-19 before Palmer leveled a service ace to bring her team within four. Going for a second straight service ace, Palmer mishit her serve to award Bridgeport the first set.
Molloy shook off the miscue well in the second stanza by racing out to a 3-1 lead off of a kill by freshman outside hitter
Carly Banks (Camas, Wash.). Banks would later answer Bridgeport's attempt at a rally with a kill to keep the Lions ahead, 6-4. The pattern would continue as the home side continued to fight back but be stopped just before leveling the score in the set. With an 8-7 lead, junior setter
Ally De Kruyf (Norwalk, Calif.) perfectly timed a jump and utilized expert deception to dump an attack over the net in front of a late-moving Bridgeport defense. Later in the game, Cookson and Palmer stuffed Sarah Rosa (Itajuba, Brazil) on an attack attempt to keep Molloy ahead by two at 14-12. After a Cookson kill made the set favor the Lions 15-13, Randen converted consecutive swings to level the set at 15 and a Molloy mishap gave the Purple Knights their first lead of the set.
The maroon and white would not go quietly, fighting tooth and nail with the hosts all the way to a 19-19 score, taking a 20-19 lead on another Banks kill. Cookson converted another attack after a service error to keep Molloy in front until Rosa answered with a kill to level the set at 21. Again it would be Cookson answering the call at Hubbell Gymnasium, as the junior launched a kill to put Molloy ahead by a 22-21 score. Then it would be Bridgeport leveling the score again at 22 after Randen and Rich combined to stuff sophomore
Samira Escobar (Fountain Valley, Calif.) at the net. Bridgeport scored the next two points until Cookson leveled a kill into the back row to keep the Lions alive in the second set. Down 24-23, Krstonosic rose up and thundered down the set-winning kill as Bridgeport escaped with a 25-23 victory in the second frame.
De Kruyf opened the third set with a service ace to give the Lions the early edge. Williams followed up with a kill out of the middle and then followed up with Escobar to stuff a Bridgeport attack, giving Molloy a 3-0 lead. It would be a 4-1 lead after Banks launched an attack right into the chest of Guinci, but Zhao responded with a kill to make it a 4-2 score. Molloy extended the lead to 6-3 following a Williams service ace, forcing the hosts to call a timeout. The stoppage in play seemed not to deter Molloy as the Lions grabbed a 9-5 lead after a kill by Palmer. Unforced errors by the Purple Knights put Molloy ahead by four at 11-7, keeping a once-lively hometown crowd relatively quiet and on edge.
The lead would stay at four following a service error by Krstonosic, and following a trading of attack errors on both sides, Molloy led 14-10. After a bad set on Rich gave the Lions a five-point lead, Bridgeport used its second and final timeout of the third set. The second break in the action woke up the Purple Knights as they scored four straight points on a kill by Randen, a good attack by Cruz and two service aces from Rosa. With the lead quickly slipping through their fingers, the Lions called for time to stop play and recuperate. It did not seem to matter in the onset as Cruz converted a kill to give the Purple Knights their fifth straight point and level the set at 15. The sides traded service errors to keep the score tied at 16, but a kill from Randen would put UB ahead for the first time in the stanza at 17-16. Following a long rally with good action on both sides, Randen thundered a kill on a slide down the near-side baseline to give the Purple Knights an 18-16 lead. Another timeout would follow after a poor set by the Lions, who had just watched their counterparts run off nine points in the last ten rallies won.
The run would become 10 of 11 after Rich and Randen sent Palmer's attack straight down to the floor on the Molloy side, giving Bridgeport a 20-16 edge. Molloy gathered up a chance to catch its breath following a Cruz service error at 21-17, but the Lions handed it right back to their opponents with a service error of their own. From there, Krstonosic took over with two kills to give Bridgeport a match point at 24-19, and a Molloy attack error sealed the three-set sweep and gave Bridgeport its 35
th consecutive East Coast Conference victory.
Molloy gave a valiant effort in the three-set loss, hitting .414 in the second set alone and an impressive .265 clip throughout the match. Banks had a team-high eight kills while Palmer had seven on a night in which she hit .636 on the attacking end. Cookson collected six kills, four total blocks and four digs while Escobar had a squad-best 12 digs to go along with three kills. De Kruyf dished out 22 assists for the maroon and white and sophomore libero
Dakota O'Neill (Long Beach, N.Y.) had 10 digs. Krstonosic, the Arkansas-Fort Smith transfer, continued her stellar rookie season in the East Coast Conference with 15 kills on a night in which she hit .355 and had nine digs. Rosa also had a fine night on the blocks with 13 kills and a .500 hitting clip while Randen launched eight kills. Cruz had five kills, eight digs and three service aces while Guinci passed a match-high 14 digs in the victory.
Head Coach
Billy Corrao and the Molloy College volleyball team will continue a tough road trip on Thursday (Oct. 22) as the Lions travel to Brookville to face LIU Post. First serve from the Pratt Recreation Center is set for 7 p.m.
