Hopp, Pirates Close Season with Four-Set Loss at UConn

Saturday, March 27

Storrs, Conn. / Gampel Pavilion

6:00 PM

Seton Hall University

4-7, 2-6BE

Connecticut

4-6, 4-4BE

Seton Hall

UCONN

Hopp, Pirates Close Season with Four-Set Loss at UConn

3/27/2021 8:16:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score HOME BOX SCORE (.pdf)

STORRS, CONN. – Sophomore Reagan Hopp (Carmel, Ind.) erupted for 14 kills with only one attack error, but the Seton Hall women's volleyball team fell at Connecticut, 3-1 (17-25, 25-16, 18-25, 21-25), on Saturday to close the 2021 season.

Hopp saved her best performance of the season for the last match, collecting a team-high 14 kills, only one attack error, and a .464 attack percentage.

Junior Emilee Turner (Kaysville, Utah) also had a strong match offensively, registering 10 kills and only three attack errors. Meanwhile, freshman Taylor Jakubowski (Lake in the Hills, Ill.) recorded her seventh double-double of the season with 20 assists and 17 digs.

SET 1:
With the score tied at nine, Connecticut assumed control with a 7-2 run to take a 16-11 lead and force a Seton Hall timeout. A kill by Amanda Rachwal (Bethlehem, Pa.) cut The Hall's deficit to 17-14, but the Huskies responded with a 6-1 run to grab a commanding 23-15 advantage. Connecticut went on to a 25-17 set one victory.

SET 2:
Seton Hall got off to a great start to open the second set and never trailed throughout. With The Hall leading 8-7, the Pirates scored five straight points to grab a commanding 13-7 advantage. Still leading by six, back-to-back kills by Tsvetelina Ilieva (Sofia, Bulgaria) and Hopp boosted the Pirates' lead to 18-10 and forced UConn to take their second timeout. Connecticut scored three straight points to cut their deficit to five, but The Hall answered back with five straight points to extend its lead to 23-13. Another kill by Rachwal put the Pirates in set point, and two points later, a kill by Hopp won it for The Hall, 25-16.

The Pirates had a match-high .419 attack percentage in set two, including 16 kills and only three attack errors.

SET 3:
In set three, a kill by Perri Lucas (Chicago, Ill.) got the set started, but it was the last lead for The Hall. A kill by Turner cut the Pirates deficit to 15-12, but then the Huskies scored four of the next five points to grab a 19-13 advantage. The Hall cut its deficit to 22-17, but UConn scored three of the final four points to win, 25-18, and claim a 2-1 match lead.

SET 4:
Although UConn led for most of the match, its lead never got greater than three points. Back-to-back kills by Hopp and Madison Frusha (Huntsville, Texas) cut The Hall's deficit to 15-14, but the Huskies bounced back with five of the next six points to grab a 20-15 edge. Down 23-18, the Pirates scored three straight, but UConn closed out the four-set win with a 25-21 victory.

Inside the Numbers:

Hopp matched her career-high with 14 kills to go with one attack error and a .464 attack percentage.
Turner had 10 kills and two blocks.
Jakubowski had a double-double with 20 assists and 17 digs.
Sophomore Raygan Murray (Rocky River, Ohio) collected a match-high 21 digs to go with four assists.
Seton Hall recorded a .236 attack percentage for the match, while Connecticut attacked at .348.
The Pirates had 52 kills, while the Huskies recorded 59.
The Hall finished with 59 digs, while UConn tallied 64.
The Pirates had 5.0 team blocks, while Connecticut had 6.0.

News & Notes:

Seton Hall finishes the 2021 season with a 4-7 overall record and a 2-6 mark in the BIG EAST, while Connecticut improves to 4-6 overall and 4-4 in conference play.
The Pirates fall to 10-21 all-time against the Huskies and have dropped the last three in the series.
Seton Hall drops to 1-2 in four-set matches this season.
Jakubowski has now recorded a double-double in seven of her first 11 collegiate matches.
Murray reached the 20 digs mark in a match for the fourth time this season and the seventh time of her career.

Up Next:
Tonight's match concludes the 2021 COVID-shortened season for the Pirates. The team will be back in action again this fall.