Tritons Recover From Early Loss, Close Weekend With Win Over Missouri-St. Louis

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - After dropping their opening game on day two of the Eckerd Invitational, the Triton volleyball team responded with a quality performance in the tournament finale to hand Missouri-St. Louis its first loss of the season.

HOW IT ENDED
Game 1 Final: Seton Hill 3, Eckerd 1 (25-16, 18-25, 25-21, 25-23)
Records: Eckerd 1-2, Seton Hill 2-2

Game 2 Final: Eckerd 3, Missouri-St. Louis 1 (26-24, 20-25, 25-9, 25-23)
Records: Eckerd 2-2, UMSL 3-1

HOW IT HAPPENED
Game 1

• The Griffons hit a blistering .464 in the first set and used a late seven-point run to pull away for a 25-16 win. The Tritons hung around early and trailed 15-14 after an ace by Johana Havenaar before SHU went on its run.
• Asya Harris came off the bench to put a spark in Eckerd's attack. The freshman tallied six kills in the set, including three in a row in the midst of a 5-0 run, and the Tritons continued to widen the gap. EC took three of the final four points of the set, squaring the match at one set apiece with a 25-18 win.
• Eckerd held a 7-4 lead early in set three, but Seton Hill rolled off 12 straight points before Sarah Johnshoy's kill got a much-needed side-out.  Trailing 19-10, the Tritons fought back to cut the deficit to two points (23-21) after Harris's sixth kill of the set. The Griffons managed to hold off the EC rally, closing the set on a Leah Bisignani kill and Brynn Fleury ace for a 2-1 match lead.
• The fourth set featured several ties and lead changes before Eckerd appeared to take control late, going ahead 21-18 following a Paula Hoffmann ace.  A Seton Hill timeout, however, killed Eckerd's momentum. The Griffons took the next three points to tie the set. The Tritons again took the lead at 23-22 but SHU closed by taking the final three points to complete a four-set win.

Game 2

• Eckerd fell behind by seven points in the first set at 18-11 before mounting a comeback.  A combination of Paula Hoffmann's attacking and strong net defense pulled the Tritons within two points at 21-19.  EC later tied the set but had to survive set point thanks to a Harris kill. Arielle Erillo followed with an ace and the Tritons closed the set on a combination block by Harris and Johnshoy for a 26-24 win.
• EC went on an early eight-point run to take a 13-9 lead in set two.  UMSL answered later with a five-point run, going ahead for good.  Missouri St.-Louis continued to pull away, winning five of the last seven points to even the match with a 25-20 set victory.
• With the third set tied 4-4, Fernanda Reis executed a perfect dump kill for what turned out to be the first point of a 12-point Triton run.  EC later rolled off four straight points to take a 15-point lead as the Tritons dominated the third set with a 25-9 win while hitting .609 in the set.
• Eckerd looked to be on the verge of running away with the fourth set in similar fashion, taking five straight points in building a 12-6 lead.  UMSL, though, won points on 10 of the next 13 rallies to go back in front. The lead grew to four points at 21-17 before EC began its comeback. Four straight Triton kills tied the set and a USML error put Eckerd back on top.  The two teams then traded points over the next four rallies as EC got to match point. Harris's cross-court attack was tipped, giving Eckerd a narrow 25-23 set win to close the match.

NOTES AND NUMBERS

• Harris posted a match-high 15 kills in the opener after entering the match in the second set.
• Errors plagued the Tritons against Seton Hill. EC committed 26 attack errors and 14 service errors.  The Tritons reversed that trend in the nightcap with just 21 combined errors.  Eckerd committed only one attack error in the last two sets.
• Four players reached double-digits in kills in the UMSL match: Hoffmann (17), Harris (14), Rachel Wisian (11), and Johnshoy (10).
• The Tritons recorded 10 aces against UMSL, the third time in four matches in which EC had reached double-digits in aces.
• Fernanda Reis tallied 51 assists against Missouri-St. Louis, two short of her career high. Arielle Erillo had 27 digs, the most in her career in a four-set match.

UP NEXT
Eckerd heads to Embry-Riddle next weekend to play three matches in the Eagle Invitational beginning on Friday.