UNION, NJ – The Blue Angels split a pair of matches on the second day of the Kean Invitational, defeating Plymouth State University, 3-2, before falling to Penn State Behrend, with both matches being played at Harwood Arena on the Kean campus.
Meghan King (New City, NY/Clarkstown North) slammed home a team-high 10 kills, adding 11 digs for a double-double for The College of New Rochelle (19-7) in the win over Plymouth State (7-14). Indigo Flowers (Castro Valley, CA/Castro Valley) also tallied a double-double with 10 assists and 10 digs. Fabiola Padilla Rios (San Juan, PR/University Gardens) and Marissa Armstrong (Scottsdale, AZ/Paradise Valley) each tallied eight kills to go along with 22 and 23 digs, respectively. Melanie Lopez Soto (Gurabo, PR/Notre Dame) chipped in with a team-high 15 assists, seven digs, four kills, and three aces.
The Blue Angels led, 7-4, early in the first set, and led, 19-17, before Plymouth State used an 8-2 run to take the opening set, 25-21. Each team had mini-runs in the early going of the second set, and CNR led, 15-11 before a 6-0 Plymouth State run gave the Panthers a 17-15 lead. With the score tied at 18-18, the teams traded points before the Blue Angels secured with set with a 3-0 run to take a 28-26 win and even the match at 1-1. Plymouth State opened the third set with a 12-5 run but CNR gradually chipped away at the deficit, and used a 9-2 run to take a 22-20 lead. After two points from the Panthers tied the score at 22-22, the Blue Angels scored three of the final four points to earn a 25-23 win and a 2-1 set advantage. The Panthers opened the fourth set with a 6-0 run and did not look back en route to a 25-11 win, forcing a deciding set. The fifth set saw Plymouth State hold a 10-6 lead before CNR scored nine of the final 12 points, culminating with an Armstrong kill at match point, to take the set, 15-13, and the match, 3-2.
Padilla Rios paced the Blue Angel offense against Penn State Behrend (16-8), tallying team-highs with eight kills and 16 digs. Tiany Perez Diaz (Junco, PR/Notre Dame) dug up 15 balls, while King added six kills and eight digs.
The opening set was the tightest of the match, as neither team held a lead larger than two points until a 4-0 CNR run turned an 18-17 deficit into a 21-18 lead. The Blue Angels led, 23-19 and looked to take an early lead, but the Lions closed out the set with a 6-0 run to take the set, 25-23. The second set began in a similar fashion to the first, until, with the score tied at 8-8, Penn State used an 11-1 run to take a 19-9 lead. A late 8-2 run from CNR brought the Blue Angels as close as 23-19, but the Lions scored three of the next four points to earn a 25-20 win. The third set was a carbon copy of the first two, as the two evenly matched teams battled over every point. With Penn State holding a slim, 17-15 lead, the Lions scored eight of the next nine points to take the set, 25-16, and the match, 3-0.
The Blue Angels will return to the court on Thursday, October 16, traveling to Purchase, NY for a non-conference meeting with Purchase College. The match is slated to begin at 7:00 PM.