Bridgeport, Conn. – Bentley University upended the Adelphi University women's volleyball team 3-0 (25-21, 25-17, 25-15) earlier this evening during the first round of the NCAA East Regional at the University of Bridgeport.
Seniors
Haley Blunt and
Kaitlyn DeStefano led the Panther (16-15) attack with nine and eight kills respectively. On the defensive end,
Sierra Crook led Adelphi with 14, while Blunt added nine; DeStefano added eight blocks (two solo and six assisted), while
Samantha Breidenbach chipped in five block assists. Freshman
Megan Manierski passed out 30 assists in the effort.
Jaci Buscher and Tatiana Froehlich each shared the game-high of 13 kills for Bentley (19-11). Alex Tator played well on both sides of the ball with 28 assists and 12 digs.
The Falcons started to gain momentum in the middle portion of the first set, going up 14-10 to force a timeout from Adelphi. Both teams continued to trade points before the Panthers put on a 6-2 run to get within 22-21. Bentley then claimed the final three points to win the first set 25-21. Sophomore
Mandy Stanislovaitis led the Brown and Gold with five kills, however, Buscher put down six for the Falcons.
Bentley was again out in front in the second set with a 5-2 lead followed by a 15-10 advantage later on in the game. The Falcons continued to push forward with the lead and scored the final three points of the game towards a 25-17 victory and go up 2-0 in the match. Bentley benefitted from a .277 hitting percentage as Froehlich swung for nine kills in the set.
The Panthers pushed out to a 7-4 lead in the early stages of game three before the Falcons rallied to claim a 14-9 advantage that included seven straight points. That run propelled Bentley to a 25-15 third set victory and helped secure the 3-0 match win.
The Falcons go on to face host Bridgeport in the semifinals of the East Regional tomorrow at 7:30 pm. LIU Post and fellow Northeast-10 Conference member New Haven face off in the other semifinal at 5:00 pm.
The Panthers finish the season with a 16-15 record as the No. 5 seed in the regional after winning the NE-10 Championship. This marked the eighth straight trip to the NCAA Tournament for
Danielle MacKnight and the Panthers.