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Brown University
Bryant
Volleyball Defeats Ocean State Rival Bryant in Home Opener, 3-1
9/3/2016 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Senior Sarah Lucenti and freshman Makena Ehlert each registered a double-double as Brown University volleyball defeated Bryant University, 3-1 (25-20, 25-18, 22-25, 25-18), in its home opener on Saturday afternoon at the Pizzitola Sports Center.
The Bears (1-2) finished with a hitting percentage of .295 in the match on their way to wins in sets one, two, and four over the visiting Bulldogs (2-6) in the team's first home match of the year on Williams Court.
Ehlert (Orange County, Calif.) posted her second double-double in as many matches with 11 kills and 11 digs while Lucenti (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) – a selection for the Crusader Classic All-Tournament Team – tallied her 22nd career double-double on 24 assists and 12 digs.
Sophomore Sabrina Stillwell (Laguna Beach, Calif.) landed a team-high 13 kills on .417 hitting, senior Payton Smith (Atherton, Calif.) totaled 10 kills and four blocks, and junior Shirin Tooloee (San Jose, Calif.) logged nine kills.
Junior libero Melissa Cairo (Hillsborough, Calif.) notched a team-high 16 digs, sophomore Elisa Merten (Woodside, Calif.) dished out 17 assists, and junior Chaney Hart (Paradise Valley, Ariz.) chipped in 10 digs.
Neither side could gain much separation over the majority of the first set with Brown holding onto a 20-19 lead late in the frame. The Bears won five of the last six points to emerge with a 25-20 win in the opening set. Ehlert and Tooloee each had three kills in the stanza.
The Bears built a 12-7 lead early in set two and held at least a three-point advantage for the remainder of the frame on their way to a 25-18 set win. In the set, Ehlert and Smith both terminated on four kills, Lucenti and Merten combined for 12 assists, and Cairo made six digs.
Brown held an 11-10 lead in set three before Bryant scored four straight points to move ahead 14-10. The Bears pulled within 21-19 late in the frame, but the visitors held on for a 25-22 win to remain in the match. Stillwell and Ehlert posted four kills and five digs respectively in the frame.
In set four, Brown used a 9-2 run early in the set to turn an 8-5 deficit into a 14-10 advantage. The Bears maintained a three-point edge the rest of the way to close the match with a 25-18 set win. Lucenti registered 10 assists and five digs in the period while Stillwell added four more kills.
For Bryant, Julia Flynn notched a match-best 17 kills, Vika Katzen passed out a match-high 30 assists, and Nikki Kim finished with a contest-high 21 digs.
Next, Brown hosts crosstown rival Providence College on Wednesday, Sept. 7 at 7 p.m. before playing in three games at the San Francisco Challenge from Sept. 9-10.
Video of all Brown volleyball home contests and all Ivy League matches, home and away, will be broadcast live on ILDN.TV/BROWN.
