Credit: GR Productions
Merk, Klungel Sail Pirates To 3-1 Victory Over LIU
Published: Wednesday, September 18, 2024
by CJ Weipz
BROOKLYN, NY – Reagan Merk speared the Sharks after her career-high 19 kills and 21 digs led Seton Hall to their sixth win in their last seven matches. Two other Pirates joined Merk with double-doubles, which is the most they’ve had since they visited UC Irvine early last season.
Alongside Merk, Maddie Klungel and Gwen Adler helped the Pirates bounce back after their last loss to Towson. Klungel notched 14 digs and nearly 30 assists, while Adler accounted for a career high 14 assists and 16 digs.
The Pirates controlled most of the match, starting with the first set. The Hall never trailed during the set but ended up tied at 7 apiece after a short burst from the Sharks. LIU’s Camelia Menendez had back-to-back kills that evened the score, but the Pirates quickly pulled away. The Seton Hall defense was outstanding, holding the Sharks to a 0% attacking percentage and taking the first set 25-19.
Set two was a little dicey for Coach Shannon Thompson’s squad, as they blew an early 8-2 lead to find themselves down 18-16 later in the set. Grace Turner and Klungel stopped the bleeding and evened it up at 22, which brought a Sharks timeout. The Pirates would then steal the last three points, putting them in position to sweep.
However, LIU had other plans. The Sharks, who were picked 2nd in the NEC preseason
poll, took set three in dominating fashion. Jordan McDonald tacked on three kills
as the Sharks defense forced 11 Pirate attacking errors, the worst attacking set for
the Pirates all match. LIU would stroll to a 25-13 win to extend the match.
This was the sixth match in which Seton Hall reached the fourth set, but Merk made
sure it was a quick one. The senior Mountain West transfer finished with six kills,
six digs, and no attacking errors in the final frame. Senna Roberts-Navarro called
game as she tacked on the game-winning kill.
The Pirates won their first true road game of the season, as they improved to 6-4
on the young campaign. Four Pirates counted double-digit digs for a total of 94, the
most in a single match during Thompson’s tenure.
Seton Hall will stay on the road this week as they travel to Fordham to take on the
Rams in the Bronx on Saturday, September 21 at 4:30 p.m.
Posted in: sports,