Conference

CENTRAL CONNECTICUT AND LIU BROOKLYN START OUT 2-0 AS CONFERENCE PLAY BEGINS

League play began last week for the Northeast Conference women’s volleyball teams. LIU Brooklyn and Central Connecticut secured two wins apiece, while four other teams—Saint Francis (PA), Robert Morris, Fairleigh Dickinson and Sacred Heart—picked up one.
 
- LIU Brooklyn and Sacred Heart met in a repeat of last year’s NEC title-match, with LIU Brooklyn coming out on top this time around. The Blackbirds won the first two sets, but Sacred Heart was relentless, and took the next two to force the match into a fifth set. The Blackbirds saw strong performances from Annika Foit (Hausach, Germany/ Robert-Gerwig-Gymnasium) and Adriana Vinas Joy (San Juan, Puerto Rico/Colegia Marista) while Johanna Osvenek (London, Ontario/Saunders Secondary) led the Pioneers.
 
- Sacred Heart, the defending NEC champion, broke its six-game losing streak with a decisive 3-0 win over St. Francis (NY). Three Pioneers had double digit kills in the match.
 
- Robert Morris picked up a 3-1 win over Bryant, and Fairleigh Dickinson defeated Quinnipiac 3-0.
 
- Brittany Schumacher (Hartford, WI/Hartford) of Central Connecticut has now reached double-digit digs in 40 straight matches, including the Blue Devils’ wins over St. Francis (NY) (3-0) and Fairleigh Dickinson (3-1) this past weekend,
 
• Record-Breaking Effort: Kierstin Keiser (Clarion, PA/Clarion) led Saint Francis (PA) to a 3-2, comeback thriller over Bryant after recording 67 kills during the match and breaking the program record. The Red Flash were down two sets before rallying back to take the next three and notch their first NEC win of the 2012 season.
 
• National Rankings:  Fairleigh Dickinson’s Meaghan Wheeler (Chatsworth, CA/Chaminade College Prep) once against has made it into the top-20 of the national rankings in two categories. She is ranked 16th in points per set with 5.06, and ranked 17th in kills per set (4.45). Wheeler has reached double-digit kills 10 times this season. Bryant’s Claire Van Dyk (New Richmond, WI/Hill-Murray) sits in 18th on the list for aces per set, with .51. Saint Francis (PA) was the only NEC team ranked in the top-30, placing high up in third place for aces per set with 1.96. The national rankings are reported on Tuesdays.
 
• 1,000 Kills/Digs Club: Several NEC athletes surpassed the 1,000 kills or digs mark last week. Lindsey Monger (Rising Sun, MD/Rising Sun) of Robert Morris became just the ninth Colonial to surpass 1,000 kills and the second Colonial to record 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs. Bryant senior Macy Mitravich (Waimanalo, HI/Sacred Hearts Academy) recently surpassed the 1000-career dig mark and currently sits at 1100 on her four-year career. Quinnipiac’s Logan Riker (Bowling Green, OH/Bowling Green) is also on track to reach 1,000 kills this season, needing 25 more. She is also 42 shy of the program record of 1,107.
 
• Up Next: St. Francis and LIU Brooklyn each have one non-conference game against fellow New York Schools. Northeast Conference action continues on Saturday with eight matches this weekend.
 
• NEC Front Row: Catch all the NEC action this weekend when six women’s volleyball matches will be broadcast live on NEC Front Row (www.NECFrontRow.com), the league’s new digital network. Games will also be available on-demand.
 
• Women’s Volleyball HQ: For the latest on the goings on in the NEC and all things women’s volleyball visit www.northeastconference.org. You can also follow the league on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube (@NECsports) as well as the NEC Overtime! blog (necovertime.com).
 
Top Performers of Week
 
•Johanna Ovsenek (Sacred Heart)
Ovsenek led the Pioneers durring the weekend, hitting .460 with 28 kills. She was instrumental in SHU’s first NEC win against the St. Francis (NY), as she hit a season-high .611.
 
• Lindsey Monger (Robert Morris)
Monger hit .314 with 14 kills against Bryant to become the ninth Colonial to surpass 1,000 kills and the second Colonial to record 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs.
 
• Blaike King (CCSU)
King posted a .404 hitting percentage over two victories last weekend. She connected for 23 kills on 52 total attacks. Her best match came against FDU, contributing a team-high 13 kills and also contributed 10 digs. King averaged 3.29 kills per set and 1.86 digs/set for the week.
 
Milestone Watch
 
• Kierstin Kiser (Saint Francis (PA))
Kiser broke the Saint Francis all-time record in assists in a match with 67 versus Bryant.
 
• Jadith Lorenzo (Bryant)
Lorenzo is approaching the 3000-career assist mark, currently sitting at 2719 with at least 16 matches to go. She is on pace to surpass the mark this season.
 
• Emily Kaup (Bryant)
Kaup needs just 18 more blocks to reach 300 on her career and is also just 20 kills shy of 500 .
 
• Makenna Lommorri (CCSU)
The freshman is 22 assists shy of 500 for the season
 
Quotable
 
• Robert Morris
“Lindsey has worked her tail off to become a better hitter as she has matured and she has always been a good defender.” Head Coach Dale Starr said of Monger’s performance.
 
“It feels great; I can’t take all the credit though because it takes good passing and good setting to achieve a milestone like that.” Lindsey Monger on surpassing 1,000 kills.