Volleyball Falls Just Short at USJ

WEST HARTFORD, Conn. -- The Mitchell College women's volleyball team dropped a 3-2 non-conference contest to the University of Saint Joseph on Wednesday night at the O'Connell Center.

All but one set was decided by three points or less as USJ eked out the win behind scores of 29-27, 23-25, 16-25, 25-22 and 15-13. Shannon Carey posted a match-high 16 kills to lead the Blue Jays, who evened their record at 6-6 on the season.

Mitchell was led by a season-high 15 kills and 12 digs from Olivia DeLoach. Brianna Ley added a double-double of 10 kills and 10 digs while Lexi Hubbard followed suit with 34 assists and 13 digs. Bree Rudolph contributed eight of Mitchell's 19 aces on the night and Cameron Childs chipped in 19 digs. 

In the opening stanza, Mitchell failed to capitalize on two set points but also clawed back from a pair of set points. In the end, Carey didn't let a third chance slip by as her kill put the Blue Jays up 1-0.

The Mariners bounced back to take the next two sets. In the second, DeLoach snapped a 23-23 stalemate with back-to-back kills to even up the match. Mitchell then won six of the last seven points in the third set to go up 2-1, with DeLoach providing another pair of kills during the stretch.

After forcing a fifth and deciding set, USJ pulled in front early and led by as many as four at 10-6. However, the Mariners rallied for five of the next six points to draw even at 11-11, and moments later it was 13-13 with the match hanging in the balance. The Blue Jays took the lead on a kill by Hannah Benson and then put the match away with a service ace from Madison Tufi.

Mitchell (7-7 overall) will next host New England College on Saturday, October 5 at noon.