TAMPA, Fla., September 8, 2023 – The No. 15-ranked Monroe College Mustangs women's volleyball team returned to Florida on Friday for the Hillsborough Hawks Florida Challenge, hosted by Hillsborough Community College, and played two incredibly close matches on Day 1. The Mustangs ultimately dropped their opener to host Hillsborough in five sets before later dropping a very tight three-set match to No. 17 Daytona State College. The Mustangs fall to 7-6 on the season after Friday's matches.
 
MATCH 1: Hillsborough 3, #15 Monroe 2 (25-21, 15-25, 24-26, 25-22, 11-15)
Friday featured the third matchup this season between the Mustangs and Hawks, and was the second time the match needed five sets to determine a victor. The opening set got off to an even start, but the Mustangs used a 5-of-6 stretch to take a 13-8 lead. The Mustangs had a steady lead until the Hawks took 6-of-7 to get back within one at 20-19. The Mustangs bounced back by scoring four of the next five points to reach set point, taking it two points later for a 25-21 win.
 
The Mustangs fell behind in the second stanza, but were within a point at 14-13 midway through. The Hawks then went on a big run, scoring nine straight before closing it out with a 25-15 win to tie up the match.
 
The Hawks once again had a lead over the Mustangs in the third game, going up, 12-8, before a big run for the Mustangs saw them grab a 16-13 advantage. Monroe held a 23-20 lead before the Hawks scored three straight to knot things up. Monroe reached set point at 24-23, but the home team managed to keep its composure and score three straight points to grab a 26-24 win and go up, 2-1.
 
The Mustangs found an early rhythm in the fourth frame, taking a 7-2 edge over the Hawks. That lead soon expanded to 12-6, but later narrowed when the Hawks got within a point at 18-17. The Mustangs did not lose their lead, scoring the next three points to go back up by four, but the Hawks followed by taking 4-of-5 to get right back within a point at 22-21. The Mustangs then held on by taking 3-of-4 to earn a 25-22 win and send the match to a deciding fifth set.
 
The Mustangs scored the first five points of the final set before the Hawks called a timeout. After holding a 7-3 edge, the Hawks turned the tables with five straight points to steal the lead away. The Mustangs took the next two to jump ahead again, but Hillsborough responded with two of its own before another point for Monroe tied the game at 10-10. The Hawks scored the next two to force a Monroe timeout, and the Mustangs got the next point out of the break, but the Hawks responded with three final kills to claim the 15-11 win and take the five-set match.
 
Darlenys Olivo and Gabriela Aimi Zuquelo both registered double-doubles in Friday's opener. Olivo led the team with 20 kills and added 15 digs to go with a pair of blocks. Zuquelo totaled 12 kills, 10 digs, three aces and three blocks of her own. Manon Braunsteffer had a highly impressive match with 11 kills and eight blocks. Martina Villani did as well with 35 assists, seven blocks, four digs and three kills. Alessia Gallo scooped up a team-high 28 digs in the match. Kiara Figueroa added nine kills, while Francesca Andreon dished out 10 assists.
 
MATCH 2: #17 Daytona State 3, #15 Monroe 0 (25-23, 25-23, 25-21)
The Mustangs then faced off with now-ranked No. 17 Daytona State for the second time this season to close out the day, and despite the match ending in three sets, it was an incredibly tightly contested match. The Falcons took a big lead early on when they went up, 10-3, on Monroe. The Mustangs then began to make their way back into the game, going on a 9-2 run to tie things up at 12-12. The score was tied again at 14-14 before the Falcons regained their momentum with five straight points, but the Mustangs turned things right back around and tied the set up at 21-21. The game was later knotted up at 23-23 before Daytona State scored the final two points on a pair of errors to narrowly defeat the Mustangs, 25-23.
 
Daytona State once again took an early lead in the second set with a 10-5 advantage. The Mustangs were back within three at 12-9 before the Falcons scored 7-of-8 to go up, 19-10. The Mustangs then went on a run, scoring six straight points and 10-of-11 to tie the game at 20-20. The second stanza was once again tied up at 23-23 late, but the Mustangs once again had two errors on the last two rallies to give the Falcons another 25-23 win to put Daytona State up, 2-0.
 
The third frame was another close one, with the two teams locked up at 10-10 early on. The Falcons then scored 4-of-5 to take a 14-11 edge, but the Mustangs narrowed the gap with two straight. Daytona State then extended its lead with a 5-of-6 run, going up 19-14, but the Mustangs were close again late in the set at 22-20. The Falcons reached match point at 24-20 before the Mustangs held on with one more point, but Daytona State stopped Monroe's run before it could get going with one final point for a 25-21 win.
 
Olivo and Zuquelo matched for a team-high eight kills in Friday's finale, with both picked up five digs apiece as well. Olivo added four blocks and three aces in the match. Braunsteffer tallied another seven kills and four blocks. Andreon led the team with 13 assists, while Villani handed out 11. Gallo picked up 16 digs to lead the Mustangs.
 
The Mustangs will once again see a pair of familiar foes on Saturday, Sept. 9, when they wrap up their trip to the Hillsborough Hawks Florida Challenge with matches against No. 1 Florida Southwestern State College and Polk State College. The Mustangs take on the Buccaneers at 12:30 p.m. before closing out their day against Polk State at 5 p.m.
 
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). Read Full Article