Thelen Hits Milestone as Pirates Down VCU in Thriller

Friday, August 31

South Orange, N.J.

7:00 PM

Seton Hall University

3-1

Virginia Commonwealth

0-4

VCU

Seton Hall

Thelen Hits Milestone as Pirates Down VCU in Thriller

8/31/2018 11:11:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

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SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. – Senior Abby Thelen (Ft. Mitchell, Ky.) became the 11^th player in Seton Hall history to reach the 1,000-kill milestone and the Seton Hall women's volleyball team rallied from a 2-1 match deficit to defeat VCU, 3-2 (25-21, 19-25, 24-26, 25-22, 15-7), in the Seton Hall Classic on Friday.

Thelen had a match-high 18 kills to lead four Pirates in double-figure kills. Senior Caitlin Koska (Franklin, Wis.) netted a double-double with 14 kills and 12 digs, while a pair of freshman topped 10 kills for the first time in their careers. Emilee Turner (Kaysville, Utah) and Claire Forrest (Pasadena, Calif.) combined for 26 kills and only three attack errors. Turner had a career-high 15 kills to go with just one attack error for a team-best .438 attack percentage, while Forrest had 11 kills and two attack errors.

SET 1:
The Pirates' offense struck early and often against VCU in the first set, jumping out to a quick 7-2 lead, and never looked back. In fact, The Hall never trailed in the first set. A kill by Thelen gave the Pirates their largest lead of the set, six points, at 15-9. Sophomore Amanda Rachwal (Bethlehem, Pa.) provided the final blow, a kill that gave Seton Hall a 25-21 first set victory. The Pirates had a match-high .467 attack percentage in the opening frame.

SET 2:
Seton Hall led VCU, 9-8, in set two, but the Rams went on a 6-2 run to take a 14-11 advantage. Another kill by Rachwal cut the Ram lead to 16-14, but VCU went on another run, 6-1, to take a commanding 22-15 lead and prompt a Seton Hall timeout. The Rams tied the match with a 25-19 second set win.

SET 3:
Set three proved to be one of the closest and most-exciting sets of the year so far for the Pirates. The Hall fell behind early and trailed for most of the set. Down 23-18, the Pirates scored three straight points, and an ace by Maggie Cvelbar (Euclid, Ohio) forced a VCU timeout and cut the Rams' lead to 23-21. Out of the break, VCU entered set point, 24-21, but The Hall rallied again. Two Koska kills and a VCU attack error tied the set at 24. VCU rallied however, and won the final two rallies to take the set, 26-24, and claim a 2-1 match lead.

SET 4:
With the score tied at eight in set four, The Hall scored six of the next seven points, and a kill by Thelen put it in front, 14-9. With the Pirates up 18-12, VCU went on a 6-0 run of their own, tying the set at 18. Tied at 19, Seton Hall scored three straight points, and a kill by Turner put it in front, 22-19. The Rams never got closer than a two-point deficit, as the Pirates tied the match with a 25-22 set four win.

SET 5:
Seton Hall dominated the decisive fifth set, scoring the first four points. A kill by Thelen put The Hall in front, 8-5, and the teams switched sides. After the switch, the Pirates scored seven of the final nine points to trounce the Rams, 15-7, in set five, and claim the five set match win.

Here it is: Abby Thelen's 1000th kill which comes in the 4th set as we come from behind to beat VCU! #HALLin pic.twitter.com/7hx2IXAJE3
— SHU Volleyball (@SHUVolley) September 1, 2018

Inside the Numbers:

Thelen recorded a match-high 18 kills to go with five digs.
Koska tallied a double-double with 14 kills and 12 digs.
Turner had a career-high 15 kills, only one attack error, a team-high .438 attack percentage and five digs.
Forrest had a career-high 11 kills and only two attack errors.
Cvelbar narrowly missed a double-double with 22 assists and nine digs.
Senior Sophia Coffey (Sierra Madre, Calif.) had a season-high 37 assists to go with six digs.
Senior Miranda Higginbotham (Dallas, Texas) had a match-high 18 digs.
Seton Hall recorded a season-high .299 attack percentage for the match, while VCU attacked at .289.
The Hall had 69 team kills, while VCU had 64.
The Pirates totaled 69 team digs, while the VCU had 50.

News & Notes:

Seton Hall improves to 3-1 on the young season, while VCU falls to 0-3.
With 18 kills today, Thelen becomes the 11^th player in Seton Hall history to reach 1,000 career kills. She currently has 1,006 kills and needs 19 more to pass former Pirate Perette Arrington into 10^th place all-time.
Thelen reached the 15-kill mark for the second time this season and the 24^th time in her career.
With the win, Seton Hall improves to 1-2 all-time against VCU.
Coffey played in her 97^th consecutive match, which leads all active Pirates. She has not missed a match since arriving in South Orange prior to the 2015 season.
With 18 digs today, Higginbotham has surpassed the 500-dig milestone for her career.

Up Next:
The Pirates will return to action tomorrow, Saturday, September 1 when it continues play at the Seton Hall Classic with a pair of contests. The Hall will host Pittsburgh at 10:00 a.m. before returning to face Oklahoma at 7:00 p.m. at Walsh Gym.