Despite Set Two Win, UAlbany Volleyball Falls to UNH in Four in America East Title Match in Durham
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DURHAM, N.H. – The 3-seed UAlbany volleyball team took set two and led late in set three, but fell to host 1-seed New Hampshire in four sets (22-25, 25-19, 25-27, 13-25) in the America East title match on Saturday in Durham.
UAlbany (10-16) was up 23-18 in the third set, but fell after New Hampshire (20-11) came back to win that game and the next. New Hampshire gets the automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament with the America East title.
“We had our chances – UNH has some holes in their armor and we took advantage of them early, especially with Amanda [Dolan] locking down the middle with kills and blocks,” said UAlbany coach MJ Engstrom. “But, our inexperience was the difference today. We gained some valuable lessons, and they will be the base of our training for the group coming back.”
Amanda Dolan hit .263 in the match, finishing with 13 kills and four blocks. Laini Leindecker had a double-double with 16 kills, two aces and 16 digs, as did Mikala McCauley with 41 assists and 19 digs. In the back row, Viktoriia Stroilo led the team with 20 digs, while Emily Lopes had 19.
This was the final America East Tournament match for seniors Stroilo and Sofia Furlong.
“Our seniors played great this weekend, and they are the epitome of dedication and class,” said Engstrom. “They come to every practice and work hard to improve their skills, and I couldn't ask for better examples for the younger players. It's been a joy and honor to coach them both.”
After the match, McCauley was named the winner of the Elite 18 Award. The award honors the person with the highest GPA among student-athletes competing in each America East title game. McCauley has a 3.93 GPA, majoring in psychology.
Stroilo and Dolan each were named to the America East All-Tournament Team. Stroilo finished the tournament with 45 digs and seven assists, while Dolan hit .323 in the playoffs with 25 kills and just four attack errors, adding nine total blocks.
“We have one more match on our schedule, and I'm eager to see how we respond to what we learned today,” said Engstrom.
For UNH, Demi Muses, the America East Tournament MVP, hit .355 with 14 kills, 15 digs and five blocks. Tori Forrest finished with 15 kills and 16 digs, while Abby Brinkman hit .303 with 13 kills and six digs.
A couple of Forrest kills helped UNH start with a 2-0 lead. UAlbany countered with a Leindecker kill and Dolan blocking a center attack from Cassidy Croci. UNH won the next three, then UAlbany countered again with three in a row, capped by a Hunter solo block, to tie the set at 5-5. After UNH lead 9-7, UAlbany kept using the blocks, leading to a 3-0 run and 10-9 advantage. UNH followed with five points-straight, including four kills, to lead 14-10. UAlbany called timeout and got the next two points to end the run and make it 14-12 UNH. At 16-13, Furlong started the run on an outside kill and continued the run on a kill in the middle to put UAlbany back in front. A UNH attack error added another point as UAlbany went up 18-16 after the streak of five. UNH tied the set at 19-19 as the teams went back-and-forth, tying the game at 22-22. The Wildcats finished with a Muses kill, UAlbany attack error and Forrest kill to win the set 25-22.
UNH took the first three points in the second set. Leindecker started earning points at will, notching three kills and an ace to pull UAlbany within one at 5-4. UAlbany kept hitting on the outside with kills from Hunter and Furlong leading to a tie set 8-8. After a 3-0 UNH run, Leindecker earned another kill to stop the run, then Dolan blocked a dump attempt by the Wildcats. Leindecker continued the run with two more kills to push UAlbany ahead 12-11. The Wildcats got the next two, then UAlbany struck back with the next five, capped by two Dolan kills, to amass a 17-13 advantage. The two sides exchanged until a pair of crushing Hunter kills on the far side made it 20-15 UAlbany. UNH pulled to within three at 20-17, then UAlbany effectively sealed the set with a 4-0 run, started by three UNH errors and finished by a Hunter kill. UAlbany took the set 25-19 to tie the match 1-1.
A couple of Dolan kills helped UAlbany start the third set up 4-2, later going up 6-3. At 6-4, Hunter and Tatum Jungsten each hit missiles to the floor to pull UAlbany up 8-4. UNH called a timeout and put a 3-0 run together to pull within one. UAlbany got the score back to 10-7, capped by a Jungsten ace, then the home team used a couple of kills to pull to a tie 11-11. UAlbany charged forward, riding kills from Dolan and Hunter, later a Furlong solo block next to the pole, for a 5-0 run to go up 16-11. The teams went back-and-forth, with kills from Leindecker and Dolan making it 21-16, later 23-18. UNH made a 5-0 run off Taylor Dunklau's serving to tie the set at 23-23, sending UAlbany to call a timeout. UNH got a point off a UAlbany error, as Leindecker defended with a kill to make it 24-24. UNH got another kill, then Dolan got a kill. Third chance ended it as Brenna Buckwalter got a kill, then a UAlbany attack error made it 27-25 UNH, putting the home team up 2-1 in the match.
UAlbany got an early 2-1 lead after kills from Dolan and Leindecker. UNH followed with five-straight, started by Croci and Buckwalter kills, to go up 6-2, later using a couple of other runs to go up 14-4. Jungsten earned a kill to stop the run, but another three points for UNH made it 17-5. The UAlbany front line blocked a Muses attack, then a Forrest attack error pulled UAlbany closer at 17-7. UAlbany started exchanging points, but could not get closer despite kills from Leindecker and Hunter. UNH took the fourth set 25-13 to win the match.
UAlbany will play once more before the end of the year, heading west to play the University at Buffalo on Saturday, November 29th at 2 p.m.
