Box Score (Saint Anselm)  |  Box Score (New Haven)

EAST STROUDSBURG – Freshman Andrea Coyle had 13 kills, eight digs and five aces, and junior Sarah Smith added 11 kills in a 3-0 victory for East Stroudsburg University over Saint Anselm to begin Day 2 of the ESU Invitational on Saturday.

That gave the Warriors a 7-0 record heading into the tournament finale against 2017 NCAA DII East Region champions New Haven. The unbeaten run ended there, as the Chargers (6-2) edged ESU in four sets to wrap up the afternoon.

Smith had a career-high 25 kills to go along with 12 digs in the nightcap, while Coyle set season-highs in kills (16) and digs (14) against New Haven. Both were named to the All-Tournament team at the conclusion of the weekend.

The Warriors ended the ESU Invitational with a 2-1 record against teams which advanced the NCAA DII tournament last season. They will be back in action at 7 p.m. on Tuesday for a non-conference contest at Goldey-Beacom.

Match 1: ESU 3, Saint Anselm 0 (25-17, 25-20, 25-18)

The Warriors were rarely threatened while sweeping a Saint Anselm squad which advanced to last year's national tournament. The middle set was the closest of the three, as ESU held a slim 21-20 advantage before closing the frame on a 4-0 run.

Coyle accounted for five of the Warriors' 10 aces in the victory. The home side had a 10-2 overall edge in aces, and they also out-blocked their opponents by a 6-1 margin.

Senior Tina Predojevic filled up the stat sheet with 36 assists, 10 digs and four aces, while freshman Emily Meredith registered a team-high 14 digs.

Also contributing offensively were freshman Kailyn Pyle (seven kills, .357%) and junior Jasmine Williams (six kills, .429%, four blocks). ESU hit .321 as a team across the three sets.

The Hawks (5-2) suffered their only defeat of the weekend, as they won 9 of 11 sets in their other three matches during the tournament.

Match 2: New Haven 3, ESU 1 (25-20, 25-21, 23-25, 25-22)

Little separated the two teams throughout the contest, as ESU came up short in its attempt to top last year's East Region champions for a second-consecutive season.

The squads combined for 34 kills and only five errors in a hard-hitting opening set. Already holding a 17-14 lead, the Chargers won three-consecutive points to double its advantage, and the Warriors could not get closer than four points the rest of the way.

Back-to-back kills by Predojevic and Smith capped a 4-0 run which gave ESU a 21-20 lead in Set 2. The visitors, though, responded with five points of their own to take a commanding 2-0 edge in the match.

Neither team led by more than three points throughout the entirety of the third set. With the Warriors up 24-23, Predojevic came up with a block to extend the match. The sides were then tied up at 22-22 in the fourth before New Haven came up with three-straight kills to secure the win.

Kristine Rios (14 kills, 27 assists, nine digs) was an assist shy of a triple-double, while Ruby Fera (12), Kali Greathead (11) and Mallory Nowicki (11) also reached double figures in kills for the Chargers.

Smith's 25 kills came with a stellar .358 attack percentage. She is totaling 4.58 kills per set with a .340 attack percentage through ESU's first eight matches this season.

Coyle had a strong offensive output as well, with her 16 kills backed by a .333 attack rate. She picked up her first collegiate double-double.

Williams added seven kills and seven blocks in the defeat. She totaled 21 blocks over ESU's four matches this weekend.


ESU Invitational All-Tournament Team

Andrea Coyle – ESU

Catie McCarthy – Saint Anselm

Mallory Nowicki – New Haven

Kristine Rios – New Haven

Elise Smith – Caldwell

Sarah Smith – ESU

Courtney Wensel – Jefferson