Women’s Volleyball Defeated by Division I Stonehill, Former NE10 Mate

EASTON, Mass. – In a match-up between former Northeast-10 Conference foes, the Saint Michael’s College women’s volleyball team lost to Division I Stonehill College, 3-0 (25-18, 25-16, 25-18), on Saturday in Merkert Gymnasium. The Skyhawks moved from Division II following the 2021-22 school year.

RECORDS

• Saint Michael’s (1-9), Stonehill (1-9)

SAINT MICHAEL’S LEADERS

• Sophomore Alexandra Báez Rentas (San Juan, Puerto Rico/New Dimensions), 18 assists, 12 digs
• First-year Ella Patterson (Folsom, Calif./Vista Del Lago), 8 kills, 5 digs
• Senior Beth Syverson (Huntington, Vt./Mount Mansfield Union/Emmanuel [Mass.]), 4 kills
• Junior Caitlin O’Connor (Bourne, Mass./Bourne), 3 kills in 2 sets
• Junior Haley Stanton (Nashua, N.H./Nashua North), 3 kills
• First-year Dana Welch (Howell, N.J./Donovan Catholic), 2 kills in 1 set
• Sophomore Aaliyah Huihui-Martinez (Salinas, Calif./Notre Dame), 8 digs
• Senior Maddie Van Winkle (Medford, Mass./Arlington Catholic), 6 digs

OPPONENT LEADERS

• First-year Mia Berardino, 9 kills, 3 blocks
• First-year Kaitlyn Watson, 8 kills, .889 hitting
• Senior Amanda Maier, 8 kills
• Junior Jentry Allen, 8 kills
• Senior Molly Turner, 23 assists
• First-year Delaney Mihelich, 17 assists
• Junior Kristen DeLorenzo, 9 digs

MATCH FACTS

• The Purple Knights played their first Division I foe since opposing Merrimack College on Sept. 7, 2019.
• Saint Michael’s held a 40-32 lead in digs.

THE ACTION

• Báez Rentas’ kill had the Purple Knights up 4-2 in the first set, and the visitors still led 5-4 on a service error before Stonehill countered with a 7-2 run to take a 11-7 edge. A Patterson kill and consecutive attack errors brought Saint Michael’s within one point, but junior Lauren McCloskey had two kills in a 3-0 response, and the hosts never again led by fewer than three points.
• The Purple and Gold was down 7-6 after O’Connor’s kill early in set No. 2, but four Skyhawks had kills in a 6-2 counter. Three straight miscues by Stonehill allowed the visitors to creep within 13-11, but that’s as close as they got, as the Skyhawks finished on a 12-5 run.
• Saint Michael’s led 7-4 in the third set behind a Patterson kill and an ace from sophomore Shannon Jordan (Walpole, Mass./Walpole), and the teams stood tied at 12 following another Patterson kill. Stonehill responded with a 6-1 run and never again led by fewer than four points.

NEXT SAINT MICHAEL’S MATCH

• Sept. 27 at Southern New Hampshire University, 7 p.m.