Mid Coast Today

Maine Maritime Academy (1-0) defeated Saint Joseph's College (1-1), 3-0 (25-22, 25-14, 25-23) in a non-conference women's volleyball match played at the University of Southern Maine on Friday evening.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

St. Joe's opened the first set with four straight points as the Mariners committed two attack errors, SJC senior Isabel Philbrick (Milford, N.H.) recorded a block, and senior Hanna Holden (Stoughton, Mass.) belted a service ace to account for the early lead. Maine Maritime fought back with a 6-1 run and the in-state rivals swapped the lead five times before the Mariners, trailing 22-20 late in the opening set, rattled off five unanswered points to pick up the win.

The second set was all Maine Maritime, as the Mariners took advantage of 11 SJC attack errors to run away with a 24-14 triumph and stake a 2-0 match lead.

Saint Joseph's held at least a share of the lead for most of the third set, including a 22-20 edge late in what proved to be the final frame. The Mariners spoiled the Monks' hopes of prolonging the match by scoring five of the next six points on the way to a 25-23 set win and 3-0 match victory.

LEADERS – SAINT JOSEPH'S:

• Sophomore Maggie Sylvester (Barrington, N.H.) tallied five kills and seven digs
• Senior Hanna Holden (Stoughton, Mass.) notched a double-double with 11 assists and 11 digs
• Freshman Heather Darby (Shrewsbury, Mass.) added three kills and two digs
• First-year Nadia Sixto (Chattanooga, Tenn.) chipped in with three kills and a pair of digs
• Senior Catherine Balzano (Portland, Maine) produced three kills with three digs

LEADERS – MAINE MARITIME:

• Rachel Melampy led all players with 11 kills and added six digs
• Ila Smith added nine kills on 14 attempts with a .500 attack percentage
• Katie Albritton contributed 26 assists with nine digs, four kills, and a pair of aces
• Sydney Rich picked up a match-high 15 digs
• Riley Sullivan added four service aces, five assists, and four digs

HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:

With the loss Saint Joseph's falls to 12-10 all-time versus Maine Maritime Academy and has now suffered four straight setbacks at the hands of the Mariners dating back to the 2018 season.

NEXT!

Saint Joseph's will square off against Spalding University at Southern Maine on Saturday at 2:00 PM.

Original source can be found here