Quinnipiac terminated Marist volleyball’s eight-game win streak Friday night in a four-set win in front of a packed McCann Arena.
The Red Foxes looked to extend their eight-game win streak and take another step toward securing the No.2 seed in the Metro Conference.
The Red Foxes entered the matchup with a 17-12 overall record and a 12-4 mark in-conference. With two matches remaining in the regular season, Marist needed to sweep the weekend to clinch the No.2 seed and host the Metro Tournament for the first time in program history. However, Friday’s loss put that goal in jeopardy heading into the final match of the regular season.
Marist is still in the race for the No.2 seed against Siena and Sacred Heart. Tomorrow, if Siena and Sacred Heart both lose, and Marist beats Merrimack, Marist will own the tiebreaker over the Saints, and capture the No.2 seed and home-court advantage throughout the postseason.
In the worst-case, if Marist loses tomorrow, they could fall as far as the No. 5 seed, depending on other results around the conference.
“Well, tonight was certainly a setback. It wasn’t something that I think we planned on, or expected. Obviously, it was tough, but the injury was tough as well, but I think we had some really good moments and some really bad moments, and it was just a little too inconsistent tonight,” said Marist head coach Annie DeLoid.
Marist also faced lineup challenges. Sophomore outside hitter Mallory Reck has yet to return to the court after she was injured last Friday, while freshman outside hitter Molly Malone was also unavailable after going down with a left knee injury during the first set.
“I mean, injuries, obviously, are starting to plague this team a little bit, and the best ability is availability,” said DeLoid. “We just had a good conversation after the loss, and we’re definitely ready to move forward and move on.”
Both teams struggled with errors early in the first set. Quinnipiac committed several attack errors to help Marist take an early 3-2 lead, but the Red Foxes gave the points back with mistakes of their own.
Senior outside hitter Sara Dasic helped keep Marist within reach, overpowering Quinnipiac’s block for a kill to tie the set. However, the Bobcats began to pull away, taking an 18-14 lead and forcing Marist coach DeLoid to call a timeout.
The Red Foxes responded after the break. A Marist point provided a much-needed boost, and junior middle blocker Sarah Bumstread followed with a kill before teaming up with sophomore setter Caelyn Dumas for a block. Marist continued to chip away at the deficit, eventually cutting Quinnipiac’s lead to one at 23-22 and forcing a Bobcat timeout.
Marist threatened to steal the opening set, but a rare setting error by Dumas gave Quinnipiac set point. The Red Foxes ultimately fell 25-22, but when Malone went down with a left knee injury, that silenced all of McCann.
Marist responded in the second set, keeping the score close before taking control. A team block put the Red Foxes ahead 8-7, and Dasic followed with back-to-back kills to extend the lead.
Quinnipiac continued to struggle with attack errors, and Marist took advantage. After the media timeout, the Red Foxes moved ahead 19-18 behind back-to-back service aces. Another Bobcats attack error helped Marist maintain its advantage, and the Red Foxes appeared poised to take the set with a 23-19 lead.
Quinnipiac held off Marist at set point twice, but the Red Foxes closed it out 25-21 to even the match at one set apiece.
Marist carried its momentum into the third set, building a 12-8 lead and forcing a Quinnipiac timeout. Dumas added an unexpected point when she faked a set and placed the ball over the net, finding an opening between the Bobcat defenders.
Quinnipiac worked its way back into the set, cutting the deficit to one at 20-19 and prompting a Marist timeout. The Red Foxes answered as the Bobcats sent an attack out of bounds, tying the score at 21.
The teams continued to trade points, reaching a 23-23 tie. However, Quinnipiac took the next point and closed out the set 26-24, taking a 2-1 match lead.
The fourth set proved difficult for Marist to regain control. A double-contact call on Bumstead helped shift the momentum toward Quinnipiac, which won three straight points to tie the set before adding two more. A miscommunication on Marist’s side also allowed the ball to fall untouched in the middle of the court, helping the Bobcats pad their cushion.
The Red Foxes continued to fight, but Quinnipiac moved within one point of the match at 24-18. Marist responded with three consecutive points to cut the deficit to 24-21, but the comeback fell short as Quinnipiac closed out the set 25-21 and took the match.
The Red Foxes will look to rebound tomorrow, returning to their home floor at 6 p.m. for their final regular season match against Merrimack.
Edited by August Lieberman
Graphic by Xavier Angel
Photo by Michael O’Neil