HOBOKEN, N.J. (October 10, 2018)  – Junior Sara Hain set a new program record with a perfect 1.000 hitting percentage (min. 8 attempts), freshman Elizabeth Chu recorded her first career double-double, and the Stevens Institute of Technology women's volleyball team remained perfect in Empire 8 Conference play with a sweep of The Sage Colleges (25-7, 25-12, 25-10) Wednesday at Canavan Arena.
Senior Brianna Perez also had a perfect night on the attack, recording a kill on all five of her attempts, while also dishing out 14 assists. Freshman Kathleen Riegner added an additional 10 assists and served a career-high six service aces. The Ducks recorded a season-high 24 aces in moving to 18-4 overall and 6-0 in league play. Stevens has yet to drop a set in conference play and can clinch hosting rights for the E8 Tournament with a victory over St. John Fisher College on Oct. 20.
Miranda Nethaway led Sage with four kills and two blocks. The Gators have dropped three straight matches to fall to 5-16 and 0-6 in the E8.
Hain recorded eight kills on eight attacks without an error, to break the previous mark of .812, achieved by Summer Hamilton on 9/29/2006 against Mount Saint Vincent. The Roseville, Minn. native has posted 13 matches this season with a hitting percentage of .300 or better. After tonight's performance, Hain moved into second in the conference in hitting percentage at .340.
Chu totaled 12 aces and 11 digs to complete the rare libero double-double. The Old Tappan, New Jersey native is believed to be just the second libero in Division III to achieve the feat this season.
Volleys and Points
- The Ducks opened the first set with a 7-0, led by four aces delivered by freshman Elizabeth Chu.
- The Gators were unable to claw back, as Stevens hit .750 in the first set.
- Stevens began the second set with a 6-0 run, before a kill from Sage's Miranda Nethaway broke the streak.
- The Ducks went on two more runs in the set to keep a far distance from Sage.
- The Gators opened the final set with a kill from Alexys Hutchins.
- Stevens answered with two kills from Hain and Perez, along with four more Chu aces.
- Multiple unanswered runs from the Ducks proved too much for the Gators, as Stevens held them to 10 points in the final set.
Match Point
Inside the Numbers
- Sage totaled just eight kills on the night, marking the lowest for any Stevens opponent this season.
- The Ducks held the edge in kills, aces, blocks, assists, and digs.
- A potent net presence forced the Gators into a negative hitting percentage in all three sets.
- Junior Shelby Stewart led all players with three blocks.
- Stevens hit .350 for the match; their second highest this season.
From the Sidelines
- "We had an incredible team effort tonight led by Sara hitting 1.000 and Lizzie's double double."
- "We served tough and put ourselves in a position to try new things and go outside our comfort zone a little bit."
- "We have a big weekend coming up with four tough opponents so we were glad to have a solid performance like that leading into it."
Up Next
- The Ducks open the 2018 Stevens Invitational on Friday with matches against the University of Scranton (4 PM) and Haverford College (8 PM).
- Live stats and video links at StevensDucks.com.
