Pirates Rally for Four-Set Win Over Rutgers

Saturday, September 2

South Orange, N.J.

7:30 PM

Seton Hall University

4-1

Rutgers

3-3

Rutgers

Seton Hall

9/2/2017 10:56:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score HOME INFO BOX SCORE

SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. – The Seton Hall women's volleyball team rallied from a set down to defeat Rutgers in the finale of the Seton Hall Classic in four sets, 3-1 (19-25, 25-18, 29-27, 25-18), on Saturday.

The Pirates were the lone team in the tournament to win both of their matches and Sharay Barnes (Swarthmore, Pa.), Sophia Coffey (Sierra Madre, Calif.) and Abby Thelen (Ft. Mitchell, Ky.) were named to the All-Tournament Team.

SET 1:
Seton Hall took an early 6-4 lead in set one on blocks by Dominique Mason (Chicago, Ill.) and Haylee Gasser (Mission Viejo, Calif.). The Scarlet Knights however, stormed back with a 10-2 run to take a commanding 14-8 advantage. The Pirates never led again as Rutgers dominated the opening frame leading to a 25-19 result. The Hall had an attack percentage of only .033 and had only six kills.

SET 2:
The Pirates responded in the second set with their best performance of the night. This time, The Hall scored on .462 of their attacks and it took control mid-way through the set. Leading 14-12, the Pirates scored seven straight points, and blocks by Mason and Madison Salkowski (Cold Springs, Ky.) extended their lead to 21-12. The Pirates went on to tie the match with a 25-18 set two victory.

SET 3:
Set three was the closest Seton Hall has played all season. The epic frame featured 13 ties and four lead changes, and ran well past the traditional 25-point win mark. With the score tied at 15, Rutgers scored two in a row to prompt a Seton Hall timeout. The Pirates responded with an 8-2 run, and an ace by Coffey put them in front, 23-19, and prompted a Rutgers timeout. A kill by Thelen put the Pirates in set point at 24-21, but Rutgers scored three straight to tie the set at 24. The Scarlet Knights staved off three more Pirate set points, but with the score tied at 27, a pair of kills by Thelen gave The Hall a 29-27 win.

SET 4:
Seton Hall never trailed in set four. A kill by Thelen gave the Pirates a 14-8 advantage and prompted a Rutgers timeout. The lead grew to as much as eight points on three occasions before The Hall ultimately closed out the set, 25-18, and the match, 3-1.

Inside the Numbers:

Thelen led the Pirates with 15 kills to go along with eight digs.
Barnes finished with 11 kills and seven digs.
Coffey had a double-double with a team-high 21 assists and 11 digs.
Sophomore Maggie Cvelbar (Euclid, Ohio) had a double-double with 16 assists and 10 digs.
Senior Sarah Kenneweg (Poolesville, Md.) matched her career-high with 19 digs.
Seton Hall recorded a .212 attack percentage for the match, while Rutgers attacked at .219.
Seton Hall finished with 48 team kills, while Rutgers had 55.
The Pirates totaled 66 team digs, while Rutgers had 57.

News & Notes:

Seton Hall improves to 4-1 on the season for the first time since 2014.
Thelen has led the Pirates in kills in all five matches so far this season.
Coffey notched her fourth double-double of the season and the team-leading 21^th of her career.
Cvelbar's double-double is the second of her career.
Seton Hall improves to 17-16 all-time against Rutgers.
The Pirates improve to 1-0 in four-set matches this season.
Coffey played in her 67th consecutive match, which leads all active Pirates.
The victory is the 96^th in the coaching career of Allison Yaeger.