Wilkes-Barre, Pa. –
Alyssa O'Neal recorded a match-high 17 kills as the Stevens Institute of Technology women's volleyball team rolled past King's College 3-0 in MAC Freedom action Wednesday evening.
The Ducks (10-1, 2-0 MAC Freedom) earned their 10th straight victory with set wins of 25-16, 25-17 and 25-9. Stevens hit .357 for the match, including .556 in the final frame, while holding King's to a .019 hitting percentage.
HOW IT HAPPENED
King's jumped out to a 4-1 advantage in the opening set before Stevens began to chip away. Consecutive service aces from
Ella Boland helped the Ducks pull even at four before the teams traded points over the next several rallies. With the score tied at 10, Stevens took control with six consecutive points. O'Neal recorded two kills during the run while Boland added another as the Ducks moved ahead 16-10. King's pulled within five at 16-11, but Stevens continued to build its advantage, with O'Neal notching four kills late.
Julianne Danis eventually put away the final two kills of the frame to give the Ducks a 25-16 victory.
Stevens rode the momentum into the second set, scoring four of the first five points behind kills from
Kileen McNeill, O'Neal and Boland. King's battled back to even the frame at four, but the Ducks responded by scoring six of the next eight points to move ahead 10-6. Stevens maintained its advantage throughout the middle portion of the set before King's closed within three at 19-16.
Alexa Brucculeri responded with a kill before an attack error and an O'Neal kill pushed the margin to 22-16. After King's briefly stopped the run, Stevens scored the final three points, with O'Neal burying a kill before an attack error closed out the 25-17 victory.
The Ducks quickly took command of the third set, racing out to a 5-2 advantage behind three kills from O'Neal and one each from McNeill and Boland. Stevens later broke open the frame with five straight points on
Alaina Graham's serve, highlighted by a service ace and a Brucculeri kill, to build a 10-3 lead. Consecutive kills from Boland extended the margin to nine at 13-4 before King's pulled within six at 13-7. McNeill and O'Neal recorded kills before the Ducks scored seven straight points to stretch the lead to 22-8. Tarolli and Boland each notched kills during the run. Stevens closed the match by scoring the final three points, with Tarolli delivering two kills, sandwiched around a Brucculeri kill, to secure the 25-9 victory.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- O'Neal paced the Ducks with 17 kills against just two errors on 31 attempts for a .484 hitting percentage.
- Boland and McNeill each added seven kills, while Brucculeri and Tarolli contributed six apiece.
- Brucculeri dished out a match-high 28 assists and finished with six digs and six kills.
- Cadence Sturt led the defensive effort with 16 digs, while Danis added 10.
- Stevens totaled 45 kills, 53 digs, five service aces and six blocks while hitting .357 for the match. The Ducks committed just 10 attack errors on 98 attempts.
UP NEXT
The Ducks will battle Haverford College and Susquehanna University in a tri-match hosted by Haverford beginning at noon.
