Seton Hall
Thelen pilots Pirates to 3-1 win over Providence
Date: November 2, 2018By Michael Daly
Seton Hall defeated Providence 3-1 in four sets on Friday night in Walsh Gymnasium.
The first set began with the Friars taking a 5-2 lead early after an attacking error by Cherise Hennigan. Halfway through the first set, Hennigan recorded a kill that extended her team’s lead by four points to make the score 14-10. Two consecutive kills by Amanda Rachwal and Caitlin Koska put pressure on the Friars by taking a 24-17 point advantage. Addison Root’s service error resulted in her squad dropping the first set with a score of 25-18.
The second set began with the Pirates controlling the momentum early as they took an 11-6 lead. The Friars would manage to take control of the game as they capitalized on several attacking errors by Koska and Abby Thelen. After tying up the score at 13, Providence went on a 6-0 run contributed by two kills from Sarah Daneliak during this stretch. Seton Hall pulled within three points when Thelen recorded a kill to make the score 21-18. An attacking error by Providence’s Daneliak kept hope alive for the Pirates, but her teammate Root finished off the set with a kill. The Friars came out on top of the second set by winning 25-21.
For the Friars in the third set, three consecutive errors allowed their team to fall behind The Hall 7-3. Seton Hall maintained control moving forward as they were up 18-11 due to an attack error by Root. Two kills in a row by Root would shorten the deficit to only two points, as Providence trailed 18-16. The Pirates jumped out to a 24-18 after two consecutive attacking errors were produced by the Friars. Rachwal’s kill sealed the deal for a third set victory of 25-18 and her team took a 2-1 lead in the match.
The Pirates fell behind the Friars 5-1 early on in the fourth set when they recorded three attacking errors. The Pirates fought back to tie the game at 13 when Providence’s Emma Fink had a service error. The lead would change back and forth for the next several possessions, but the Friars took charge when they led 23-21. Thelen and Sophia Coffey knotted up the score at 23 after they had a kill and a service ace consecutively. An attack error by the Friars’ Root gave The Hall a 24-23 lead. After tying up the score at 24, the Friars could not hold on as Seton Hall went on to win the set 26-24. This set victory won the match for the Pirates as they ended with a 3-1 win.
Thelen had an impressive night with 20 kills. That makes for 38 total kills in her last two matches. Koska and Haylee Gasser added nine kills each to the stat sheet.
Coach Ally Yaeger spoke on winning the momentum battle throughout the match. “Tonight was all about momentum and we had it for a good portion of the night. The momentum allowed us to get in a rhythm and find ourselves offensively and defensively.”
With Seton Hall winning tonight, their record goes to 9-18 overall and 4-10 in Big East conference play. The Pirates are back in action as they go up against Creighton at home on Saturday night at 7PM.
Michael Daly can be reached at michael.daly@student.shu.edu.
Posted in: Sports, Volleyball, WSOU
