With longtime standout Perri Lucas being inactive for the game, the Seton Hall Pirates had to weather the storm against the NJIT Highlanders on Saturday, Sept. 7.
The first set started off like a tug of war, with neither side pulling away. However, back-to-back aces by middle blocker Asli Subasili gave the Pirates momentum and propelled them to an 8-5 lead.
Jenna Walsh closed the set for the Pirates, hitting the ball into a narrow opening on the right side. The Highlanders put up little resistance on the back half of the set, as they lost 25-12.
Coming into the second set, the Highlanders started to gain a little momentum back as they led 3-0. This wouldn’t last for long though, as the Pirates made a number of plays to retake the lead.
Following arguably the best rally of the game, Walsh had a kill that started a short string of scoring for the Pirates. This set remained far more even than the first one, as both sides were making dynamic plays for their team. Highlanders middle blocker Ines Varela had a tough block on graduate student Laila Wallace; however, Wallace would strike back shortly after, scoring upon miscommunication between Highlanders’.
Although the set was tightly contested for most of it, the Highlanders never retook their lead after the Pirates led 5-4. There were a few ties though, with one at 5-5 and the other at 16-16. The Pirates closed out the set on a 7-1 run, including a kill from senior Reagan Merk and back-to-back aces by Walsh to top off a 25-18 set victory.
The third set and final set continued to ramp up the intensity, as there were a number of ties and it ended with only a two point victory. Setter Maddie Klungel had a crucial ace down the stretch to give the Pirates a 22-20 lead; miscommunication between Sara Siefert and Doga Emil of the Highlanders allowed for Klungel’s serve to pay dividends.
Not long after, Merk had another ace for the Pirates to extend their lead. Within one point, the Pirates bench raised up one finger and the Walsh crowd was tapping the bleachers in excitement.
NJIT didn’t go out silently into the night, as they scored a couple more times to lessen the Pirates' lead. One of these plays came from outside hitter Aries Fontaine, who scored on a slight tap over the net.
Despite the Highlanders never giving up, the Pirates ultimately won off a service error with the score of the set being 25-23 and the final score of the game being 3-0.
The Highlanders had a balanced scoring attack. Merk and Walsh led the Pirates with nine kills each and were also impressive on the defensive end, with Walsh posting 10 digs and Merk at 13 digs.
Rylee Nelson, however, led the Pirates in digs at 14. She stands head and shoulders above her teammates in digs for the season with 72.
Following this victory, the Pirates have a record of 2-3 and have won their last two games. They look forward to playing Kent State (1-4) at Walsh Gymnasium on Sunday, Sept. 8 at 11 a.m.
Matthew Soetebeer is the head editor for the Setonian’s sports section. He can be reached at matthew.soetebeer@student.shu.edu.
