PALATKA, Fla., August 23, 2023 – The No. 14-ranked Monroe College Mustangs women's volleyball team experienced matches longer than three sets for the first time this season on Wednesday in a tri-match at St. Johns River State College that also included Hillsborough Community College. The Mustangs picked up a four-set win over the host Vikings to start the day, but dropped a thrilling five-set match against Hillsborough later in the afternoon. The Mustangs come away with a 3-2 overall record with the split.
MATCH 1: #14 Monroe 3, St. Johns River State 1 (25-23, 23-25, 25-19, 25-17)
Wednesday's opening set between the Mustangs and Vikings was neck-and-neck from start to finish. The Mustangs grabbed a 7-4 lead early on, but the Vikings battled back to eventually go up, 13-10. Monroe turned things around with a 7-1 run, eventually pulling out to a 20-17 advantage before the home team rallied again, putting a scare in the Mustangs with a 23-22 edge. A couple attack errors by the Vikings put the Mustangs back in control, and then
Darlenys Olivo closed out the game with a kill to secure a 25-23 win for Monroe.
The Vikings jumped out to a quick 4-0 lead in the second stanza, but the Mustangs regained the momentum, turning a 6-2 deficit into a 12-8 advantage. The home team tied the game up at 14-14, but the Mustangs followed with four straight points. The Vikings tied it up late at 21-21, but the Mustangs scored the next two. However, the momentum swung back toward the Vikings, who picked up the next four points for a comeback 25-23 win to tie the match up at 1-1.
The third set in Wednesday's opener went back-and-forth until the Mustangs scored four straight to take an 11-6 edge on their hosts. The lead was 16-10 before the Vikings rattled off four straight points, but the Mustangs rebounded to eventually take a 23-18 advantage, closing out the game with a 25-19 win to go up, 2-1, in the match.
The Mustangs had full control to open the fourth frame, rolling to a 6-2 lead before an eight-point run gave them a commanding 15-5 advantage on the Vikings. The lead hit 20-7 before the home team made a push, but despite a 10-4 run, the Mustangs managed to hang on for a 25-17 victory and a 3-1 win in the match.
Olivo set a new season high with 20 kills in the win, adding 12 digs to complete her first double-double to go along with four blocks.
Gabriela Aimi Zuquelo,
Manon Braunsteffer and
Tara Rajkovic each threw down seven kills in the match, while
Kiara Figueroa added six of her own.
Martina Villani handed out a season-high 29 assists, while
Francesca Andreon passed around 15.
Ariana De Jesus registered a match-high six blocks, while Braunsteffer was right behind with five. Zuquelo added three as well.
Alessia Gallo scooped up a team-high 22 digs to go with five assists.
MATCH 2: Hillsborough 3, #14 Monroe 2 (19-25, 26-24, 27-25, 17-25, 15-9)
The Mustangs fell behind early to the Hawks in the opening set, but after Hillsborough took a 14-11 lead, the Mustangs turned the tables to take a three-point lead of their own at 19-16 and never looked back. A 21-19 edge soon turned into a 25-19 win for Monroe to give the Mustangs a one-set lead in their Wednesday finale.
The next two sets were as close as they come for the Mustangs and Hawks. The largest lead of the entire second frame was just two points, as neither team was able to pull away from the other. This culminated in Hillsborough reaching set point at 24-22, but the Mustangs got a kill and an ace from Figueroa to tie things up. The Hawks then settled back in and took the last two points for a 26-24 win, tying the match at one set apiece.
The Mustangs actually took a big lead in the third frame, going up on the Hawks, 16-7, but Hillsborough fought all the way back with a number of long scoring runs, eventually pulling into the lead, 24-23. The Mustangs took the next two points to force set point and nearly hang on, but Hillsborough rebounded again to take three straight and claim a 2-1 lead with a 27-25 comeback victory.
The Hawks then took an early advantage in the fourth game, 8-4, before the Mustangs rattled off 10-of-11 points to jump ahead, 14-9. The Mustangs kept their distance from the Hawks the rest of the way, continuously scoring twice for every point Hillsborough accumulated down the stretch, to claim a 25-17 win and force the deciding fifth set.
After Monroe picked up the first two points, Hillsborough took six of the next eight to jump ahead by two. After the Mustangs got within one, The Hawks tallied five straight for an 11-5 advantage. The Mustangs were unable to close that gap, eventually dropping a 15-9 score in the final frame.
Olivo had her second straight 20-plus kill performance in Wednesday's second match, finishing with 21 to once again surpass her season-best total. Zuquelo and Braunsteffer did the same with 14 and 11 kills, respectively. Braunsteffer also had another big outing at the net with seven blocks. Rajkovic totaled four blocks in the match, adding four digs and three kills. De Jesus had another three blocks in the match. Villani easily surpassed her total from Wednesday's opener with 39 assists against Hillsborough, adding five digs, two aces and three kills to her day. Gallo led the team with 20 digs.
The Mustangs get Thursday off to regroup and recover before heading into a big tournament over the weekend, the Adventures in Paradise Battle at the Beach, hosted by Florida Southwestern State College in Fort Myers, Fla. The Mustangs open play in the tournament on Friday, Aug. 25, with a 10 a.m. rematch against Hillsborough, followed later by a 3 p.m. matchup with Polk State College.
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE COLLEGE
The athletic program at Monroe College encompasses a total of 28 teams competing across nine sports. There are 20 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well the Monroe College marching band, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus, has seven teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level.
For more information about the Monroe Mustangs, please visit us at
www.MonroeCollegeMustangs.com or follow us on social media: Facebook (
Monroe Mustangs Athletics), Twitter (
@Monroe_Mustangs) and Instagram (
@monroemustangs).
