Women’s Volleyball Flies Past York in Straight Sets

BROOKLYN, N.Y. — The St. Joseph's University, N.Y. (Brooklyn) women's volleyball team earned their first win at The Hill Center this season, defeating York College (N.Y.) in straight sets on Thursday night (25-16, 25-5, 25-5).

How it Happened

The Bears (2-2) opened each set with a commanding lead. In the first, three service aces from Rachel Meltsin (Brooklyn, N.Y./James Madison) and a pair of kills each from Martina Urgo (Astoria, N.Y./St. John's Prep) and Autumn Poppett (San Diego, Calif./Mission Hills) propelled the navy and gray to a 9-0 advantage. At 10-1, the Cardinals (1-4) closed their gap to three, 10-7. A string of aces from Jillian McGinty (Glendale, N.Y./Queens Metropolitan) restored the Bears' lead to 23-11 before ultimately taking the set, 25-16.

A 10-0 start to the second stanza set the tone in the second set. A mix of errors and kills aided the Bears in their 25-5 set win. Poppett, along with Danielle Bourne (Brooklyn, N.Y./Christ the King) and Emily Hopkins (Astoria, N.Y./Monsignor McClancy) all picked up aces in the set.

Poppett, who led the Bears' attack in the match, picked up three kills in the closing stanza. Newcomer Mireia Alba (Barcelona, Spain) also had three kills and as many aces in the set to push the navy and gray to another 25-5 set win and a straight-set match victory.

For the Bears

• Poppett finished with 10 kills, a season best, while hitting at a .467 clip.

• Meltsin dished out 18 assists to go with a trio of digs.

• Meltsin (7), McGinty (6), and Alba (3) combined for 16 of the Bears' 21 service aces on the night. 

• Urgo had four kills and as many digs.

• McGinty, Alba, and Rachel Guerra (Kent Island, Md./Kent Island) each had three kills.

• The Bears amassed a hitting percentage of .312.

Up Next

The Bears open Skyline Conference play on Monday, September 25 with a visit to SUNY Maritime. First serve is slated for 7 pm with live stats and video available on sjbkathletics.com/live.