Volleyball Rallies by New Haven in Five Set Thriller

The Central Connecticut volleyball team fell rallied past New Haven, 3-2, on Friday in an important NEC match at Detrick Gymnasium. Weronika Poczynek, Oliva Keckler and Anja Milosevic each posted a double-double to help the Blue Devils remain in contention for a berth in the conference tournament.

The Blue Devils and Chargers play at 5 p.m. on Saturday. CCSU will recognize its senior class before the match.

GAME INFORMATION | BOX SCORE

Score:  CCSU 3, NEW HAVEN 2 (15-25, 22-25, 25-20, 27-25, 15-10)
Records: CCSU (8-17, 7-6 NEC), NHVN (5-21, 4-11 NEC)
Location: Detrick Gymnasium | New Britain, CT

EY MOMENTS

• The Chargers led wire-to-wire in the opening set. A run of three straight points gave NHVN a 11-5 lead and forced a CCSU timeout. Central would trim the deficit with back-to-back kills by Poczynek and an ace by Annabelle Denommé to make it 13-9, but the Chargers end the run and eventually push the lead to double-figures and win the opening set.
• New Haven scored the first four points of the second set and would lead, 8-3 following a Central error. A block by Keckler and Amanda Tokam sparked a three-point run that sparked a CCSU rally to make it 10-8. A kill by Poczynek opened a four-point spurt that put CCSU ahead, 14-13 after a kill by Keckler. Central would push the lead to 22-17 after consecutive kills by Aubrey Stitcher, but the Chargers would score eight straight to win the set.
• In the third set, back-to-back aces by Keckler put Central ahead, 9-5. The Chargers would eventually get to within, 16-15, but were unable to draw even with the Blue Devils. Central would take advantage of four Chargers errors late to win the set and extend the match.
• An ace by Denommé would put CCSU ahead 3-2 in the fourth set and the Blue Devils would stretch the margin to 12-9 after a kill by Poczynek. The momentum swung with a five-point run that gave NHVN a 14-12 lead. The Chargers would go on to set up match point at 24-21, but a kill by Tokam was followed by a block by Poczynek and Breanna Ginley. Two more aces by Denommé put CCSU in the driver's seat to win the set after a Keckler kill.
• The Blue Devils jumped out to a quick lead in the fifth set, and forced a timeout at, 8-4. Central would close the match by winning the final four points to complete the rally.

NUMBER TO KNOW

3 – The Blue Devils have won three straight five-set matches this season. Central has played seven five-set tilts on the year overall.

NOTES

• Poczynek had a match-high 21 kills with 10 digs, and three blocks.
• Keckler had 10 kills and 14 digs with four aces and three blocks.
• Milosevic posted her second match with 50+ assists, finishing with 54 to go with 11 digs, three kills, a block and an ace.
• Ginley had 11 kills with six blocks.
• Denommé had 16 digs with four aces and six assists.
• The teams were meeting for the first time as members of the NEC.

NEXT UP

• The Blue Devils and Chargers play at 5 p.m. on Saturday. CCSU will recognize its senior class before the match.

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