JERSEY CITY, NJ -- The Saint Peter's women's volleyball team dropped a tight contest to Quinnipiac, 3-1, on Sunday afternoon in Run Baby Run Arena.
The Peacocks, wrapping up the final match of their four-game homestand inside the newly-renovated Yanitelli Center, earned an emphatic third set victory, 25-15, in between a pair of sets that Saint Peter's managed to push to extra points despite being down set point.
Senior captain Angeleyshka Curbelo was on fire throughout the match, finishing with a team-high 16.5 points on a .250 hitting percentage. She recorded her second double-double of the season, tallying 13 kills and 14 digs, as well as a career-high six blocks. She was joined in the double-double ranks by fellow veterans Alanis Alvarado (16 digs and a team-high 14 kills) and Wildalys Soto (team-high 19 digs and season-high 44 assists).
The Basics
Score: Quinnipiac 3, Saint Peter's 1 (22-25, 29-31, 25-15, 24-26)
Records: Saint Peter's (1-17, 0-7 MAAC), Quinnipiac (5-13, 4-5 MAAC)
Location: Run Baby Run Arena | Jersey City, NJ
Set Summaries
- Quinnipiac used two service runs in the middle of the first set to open up a lead as big as five.
- Down 20-16, Alvarado notched two kills in a five-point span to bring the Peacocks within a point. Strong serving would help the Bobcats close out the set, taking it, 25-22.
- With Saint Peter's down 14-9 in the second set, senior middle hitter Stephanie Rivera's serve helped the Peacocks produce a 5-0 run to tie the frame. Curbelo notched three kills during that stretch.
- For every Bobcat service run, the Peacocks had an answer -- trailing by as many as four but coming back to tie the match at 22-22. The end of the set was back-and-forth, with both teams holding multiple set points, but Quinnipiac took the edge in the end, 31-29.
- Saint Peter's ran with its momentum from the second set comeback, hitting a stellar .387 with 13 kills and just one error in the third set.
- In that third frame, the Peacocks jumped out to a 13-6 lead and sided out at a 73 percent clip to earn a commanding, 25-15 set victory.
- The Peacock block caused all sorts of problems at the start of the fourth set, helping the team open a 7-4 lead. However, the Bobcats would find their groove and go up by as many as five late in the frame.
- Down 20-15, Saint Peter's used service runs from freshman libero Charlee Cordts and Alvarado to tie the match 24-24. The Peacocks managed to save three match points, helped out by two clutch kills from Curbelo.
- The Bobcats recovered with a crucial side-out kill to end the Alvarado run and won the match on a block to take the fourth set, 26-24.
Highlights
- This is the first time three Peacocks registered a double-double (Alvarado, Curbelo, Soto) in the same match since that same trio did it on Aug. 31, 2019 against Saint Francis Brooklyn.
- The block was strong, registering a season-high 10 total blocks, which is the most in a match since the Peacocks faced Quinnipiac on Nov. 9, 2019. Curbelo led the way with her career-high six total blocks, while Rivera and freshman middle blocker Suzzanne Bigelow each had four total blocks.
- The scrappy Peacock defense had a season-high 85 digs in the match.
- Getting the nod at libero, the rookie Cordts had a season-high 17 digs in the match. She also had the team-high two service aces.
- Freshman outside hitter Lily Barnhill, who is averaging 10 kills per match across the last three contests for Saint Peter's, equaled her career-high 11 kills in this match against Quinnipiac.
Up Next
The Peacocks return to the court Wednesday (Oct. 10) on the road against Iona (5-10, 3-4 MAAC). First serve in New Rochelle, NY is at 7 p.m. and the game will air live on ESPN+.
