Women's Volleyball Rallies Come Up Short, Falling to John Jay in Straight Sets

BROOKLYN, N.Y.—The St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) women's volleyball team rallied to force a tiebreaker in the first set, but could not hold on as they fell to John Jay in straight sets, 3-0 (27-25, 25-20, 25-20) on Thursday night at Brooklyn Technical High School.

Junior Lauren GaNun (Breezy Point, N.Y./Fontbonne Hall) led the Lady Bears (4-10) with 12 kills, committing just two errors for a .263 hitting percentage and had five digs. Anna Carbone (Ozone Park, N.Y./Mary Louis) distributed 16 assists and was a dig away from a double-double with nine in a losing effort.

The Bloodhounds (6-9) posted 39 kills against St. Joseph's in the victory. Rachel Eng posted a double-double (game-high 14 kills and 10 digs), while Latanya Buckham chipped in with 10 kills of her own. Jeannette Bonilla dished out a game-high 35 assists.

Both teams were even in the first set at 11, but John Jay would build an advantage following a run that included five service aces. The lead would balloon to 22-17 in favor of the Bloodhounds. The Lady Bears would battle back after a few service errors and an ace by GaNun to even it at 22. A Carbone service ace would give St. Joseph's the 25-24 lead, but the Bloodhounds would take the set following three straight points led by Jeannette Luna's kill and service ace to close it out.

In the second stanza, the Lady Bears jumped out to a quick 6-1 start. John Jay would rally to grab the advantage with six kills and five service aces. GaNun would strike down a kill to take a 20-19 lead, but the Bloodhounds would rattle off six straight points for the second-set win.

John Jay would run out to an early 11-3 lead in the third set, however the Lady Bears would take advantage of their opponent's numerous service and attack errors to knot the score back to 15. Following a Carbone ace to tie the game at 20, Luna added two more aces that would help propel the Bloodhounds to a match win.

The Lady Bears will have a week to bounce back from their loss, when they will host York (N.Y.) on October 16th at Brooklyn Technical High School. First serve is at 7:00 PM.