EAST STROUDSBURG – The East Stroudsburg University volleyball team bounced back in impressive fashion as the Warriors cruised to sweeps over both Saint Rose and Chestnut Hill during the final day of the ESU Tri-Match on Saturday at Koehler Fieldhouse.
With the sweep, the Warriors reach the .500 mark at 5-5 headed into conference play next week. The Golden Knights finished the weekend at 3-7 following a pair of losses while the Griffins moved to 1-4 with a split.
Notables vs. Saint Rose
- Graduate student Claire Choloux posted a team-high nine kills to go along with four digs while redshirt senior Kaylee LoPresto added eight kills, 10 digs, one ace and one assist
- Sophomore Anna Coulter and senior Sydney Stone combined for 12 kills, five blocks and a pair of digs
- Taylor Haan did a little bit of everything for the Warriors as the junior finished with 26 assists, seven digs, six aces, two kills and two blocks
- Senior Makayla Baca totaled 12 digs, four aces and three assists
- The Warriors held the advantage in aces (11-5), blocks (6-4) and hitting percentage (.253-.075)
How it Happened vs. Saint Rose (25-10, 25-17, 25-22)
- The Warriors opened the match with a 5-0 run and maintained a five point lead at 9-4 until two straight points from Saint Rose made the score 9-6. ESU responded with an 8-0 spurt that included four kills and four errors by the Golden Knights to extend the edge to 17-6. It was all ESU the rest of the first set as the Warriors closed it out, 25-10, to grab a 1-0 lead in the match.
- It was back and forth to begin the second set as the score was deadlocked at 7-7 before three quick points for ESU put the Warriors ahead 10-7. The Golden Knights responded by scoring three of the next four points to pull within one (11-10), but ESU answered with a 3-0 run to push their advantage to 14-10. The teams traded the next several points with ESU up 21-17 until the Warriors ripped off the final four points to take set two, 25-17, for a 2-0 edge in the match.
- The third set started similar to the previous one as ESU found themselves slightly ahead 9-8 before scoring six of the next eight points to grow their lead to 15-10. Saint Rose answered right back with a 6-2 run to cut the deficit to one (17-16), but the Warriors responded with a 4-0 spurt to go back up 21-16. ESU ultimately closed out the set, 25-22, to earn the sweep over the Golden Knights.
Notables vs. Chestnut Hill
- Recording a remarkable .524 hitting percentage, LoPresto was tied for the team-high in kills with 13 to go along with nine digs and an ace
- Coulter matched her front court teammate with 13 kills while adding six digs, one block and one ace
- Choloux notched five kills, eight digs and a pair of aces while Haan recorded 28 assists, seven digs and two aces
- Junior Makaela McComas registered a team-high 13 assists
- ESU hit at .305 clip (37 kills, 8 errors) compared to the Griffins, who finished with a 0.79 (32 kills, 23 errors) hitting percentage
How it Happened vs. Chestnut Hill (25-8, 25-20, 25-18)
- ESU put on a clinic in the first set as the Warriors raced out to a 7-2 lead before going on an 8-3 run to extend their edge to 15-5. It was all ESU the remainder of the frame as the Warriors outscored the Griffins 10-3 to win the set, 25-8, for a 1-0 advantage in the match.
- After the Griffins got in front 3-0 to open the second set, the Warriors answered with three straight points to tie it up. It went back and forth over the next 30 points with neither team grabbing more than a two-point lead as ESU and Chestnut Hill were deadlocked at 18-18. However, the Warriors flexed their muscles down the stretch, ending the set on a 7-2 spurt to upend the Griffins (25-20) for a 2-0 advantage.
- With the score tied at 4-4 early in the final set, ESU produced a 5-2 run to jump ahead 9-6. The Warriors continued to roll, pushing the lead to 13-8 until Chestnut Hill scored four of the next five points to draw within two at 14-12. ESU would answer right back with a 4-0 spurt to extend the advantage to 18-12 and outpaced the Griffins the remainder of the set, 7-6, to earn a 25-18 victory which completed the sweep.
Up Next
ESU is back on the road next week as the Warriors open PSAC East play against Kutztown on Friday at 7 p.m. inside Keystone Arena
