NEW ROCHELLE, NY — On the night that the team’s 2013 Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (HVIAC) Tournament championship banner was unveiled, The College of New Rochelle volleyball team showed its championship form with a 3-0 win over visiting Manhattanville College in the Blue Angels’ home opener.
Fabiola Padilla Rios, who was named HVIAC Volleyball Rookie of the Week earlier in the day, tallied a match-high 19 kills to lead the CNR offense. The kills total is the fourth best in program history and sets a new record for kills in a three-set match. Hitting at a .326 clip, the rookie tallied 14 digs for her second double-double of the season, adding a match-high five service aces.
The Blue Angels raced out to a 9-3 lead in the opening set, before the Valiants rallied to pull within three, 14-11. The lead stood at five, 21-16 when Padilla Rios, closed out the set with four consecutive aces to give CNR a 25-16 win.
The teams traded points in the early going of the second set. With the score knotted at 9-9, the Blue Angels ran off five of the next six points to take a 14-10 lead. CNR led, 19-14, before Manhattanville clawed back into the set with a 6-1 run of its own to tie the score at 20-20. Three quick points from CNR pushed the lead to three en route to a 25-22 win.
The Valiants were the more aggressive team to start the third set, taking an early, 8-4 lead. After CNR rallied to take a 10-9 lead, Manhattanville demonstrated a tough resolve, scoring 8 of the next nine points to take its largest lead in any set, 17-11. The Blue Angels were not to be denied on their banner-raising night, seemingly taking control of the match with a 13-4 run to take a 24-21 lead. Three straight Valiant points pushed the set past the 25-point barrier, until a Padilla Rios kill and a Tiany Perez Diaz ace closed out the match, 31-29.
The banner ceremony preceded the match. The five Blue Angel seniors; Shamella Bartholomew, Erica Cuscina, Diana Desir, Emily Fontoura, and Meghan King revealed the championship banner before an appreciative home crowd.
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