Volleyball Bests Fairleigh Dickinson, 3-0, Outlasts Providence, 3-2

Saturday, September 14

Providence, RI

11:00 AM

Brown University

6-1

Fairleigh Dickinson University

0-9

Team	1	2	3	Final F
Brown	25	25	25	3
Fairleigh Dickinson	15	13	14	0

Volleyball Bests Fairleigh Dickinson, 3-0, Outlasts Providence, 3-2

9/14/2019 10:17:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – The Brown University volleyball team won the Friar Classic on Saturday at Alumni Hall as the Bears defeated Fairleigh Dickinson University in straight sets, 3-0 (25-15, 25-13, 25-14), and outlasted host Providence College in five sets, 3-2 (25-21, 22-25, 18-25, 25-23, 15-11).

Brown (6-1) won its second consecutive match in straight sets to open Saturday against Fairleigh Dickinson (0-9) before battling from behind and defeating the Friars (5-5) for their third five-set victory of the season.

"Today we had a tough schedule with one match early and one late so it was more of a marathon," Brown head coach Ahen Kim said. "I think being efficient this morning, with a lot of efficient scoring all the way through with our hitting percentage, really paid off in later in our five setter."

Senior Makena Ehlert (Orange County, Calif.) led the Bears offensively for the day with 28 kills and earned Tournament MVP honors. Junior Gabrielle Moriconi (Naples, Fla.), who had 25 kills in the two matches today, and sophomore Kristin Sellers (Menlo Park, Calif.), who recorded 73 assists and 15 digs against FDU and PC, joined Ehlert on the All-Tournament Team.

"Makena Ehlert did a good job applying pressure to Providence in our night match," Kim said. "Freshman Kaitlyn Wong, who gave us life last night, did that again to help us get to set five. It was good contribution overall by everyone. I thought the girls matured playing in a tough environment. Kristin Sellers also did a great job all weekend leading the team."

Next, Brown plays at intrastate rival Bryant (Sept. 17, 7:00 p.m.) before competing at the Georgia State Tournament against Northwestern State (Sept. 21, 2:00 p.m.) and host Georgia State (Sept. 22, noon).

Match 1: Brown 3, Fairleigh Dickinson 0 (25-15, 25-13, 25-14)

The Bears opened day two of the Friar Classic on Saturday with a 3-0 (25-15, 25-23, 25-14) win over Fairleigh Dickinson.

Ehlert and Moriconi again had strong performances with Ehlert pacing the duo with 12 kills while Moriconi added 11. Ehlert just missed out on a double-double, logging nine digs. Sophomore Ashley Oelrich (Newberry, Fla.) led the Bears defensively with 11 digs, and Sellers posted 27 assists. Senior Caroline Biggar (Austin, Texas) contributed one block solo and three block assists.

The Bears dominated the stat sheet and had large advantages in aces (7-1), blocks (7-2) and assists (37-25).

Brown took a 10-4 lead in the first set behind three kills from Ehlert. FDU (0-9) later battled back to pull within three, 13-10, before the Bears generated three straight points, capped off with a service ace from sophomore Paris Winkler (Rancho Santa Fe, Calif.). Brown then outscored the Knights 9-5 the rest of the way.

The Bears jumped out to a 5-1 lead in set two before the Knights put together a few runs to bring the score to 11-7. Brown then rattled off six straight points to take a 10-point lead (17-7) with Moriconi posting three kills in the rally. From there, five different players recorded at least one kill for the 25-13 win and an impressive .667 hitting percentage in the set.

Brown chipped away at FDU in the third, with four different three-point swings. Ehlert and Moriconi combined for seven of the 12 kills in the set, recording four and three, respectively. The Bears did not register an attack error and hit .444 for the set.

Mujya Mambu led Fairleigh Dickinson in kills with eight while Jaelyn Young had 12 digs and McKenna Setterlund tallied 18 assists.

Match 2: Brown 3, Providence 2 (25-21, 22-25, 18-25, 25-23, 15-11)

Brown capped off a perfect 3-0 tournament in grand fashion by defeating host Providence in five sets. After winning the first set 25-21, the Bears fell behind 2-1 when the Friars picked up wins in the following two stanzas (25-22, 25-18). Brown came back to edge Providence in the fourth set, 25-23, before winning the deciding frame, 15-11.

Ehlert again led the Bears in kills with 16 while junior Eliza Grover (Menlo Park, Calif.) and Moriconi each registered 14. Sellers notched an impressive 46 assists and had 12 digs for a double-double. Freshman Kaitlyn Wong (Los Altos, Calif.) led the five players who reached double-digit digs and had 17.

Ehlert has now reached the 10-kill plateau in all seven matches this season and has four double-doubles with her 15 digs against PC tonight. Moriconi has four-straight matches in which she has reached double-digits kills, and had a season-high 14 versus the Friars. Sellers has also had an impressive start to 2019, with 20 or more assists in all seven of Brown's matches.

The Bear put together five consecutive points with the help of three Moriconi kills for an 11-7 lead in the first set. Providence kept Brown in its sight and trailed by one at the 19-18 mark. Three kills by Ehlert then helped the Bears clinch, 25-21.

Providence never trailed in the second set, taking the stanza 25-22. The Bears knotted the set at 14 on a kill by Grover but the Friars would score the next five points to gain distance (19-14).

The Friars won their second straight set by a score of 25-18. PC opened the frame with a 5-0 run to take control early. The Bears were not able to fully put things together and their comeback bid of three straight points fell short at the end.

Brown trailed early on in set four but scored five straight to pull within one (13-12) on a kill by Moriconi. A service ace by Sellers capped three straight points as Brown led for the first time (15-14). Leading 24-20, the Bears held off a late rally by the Friars and Moriconi clinched the set with a kill.

In the deciding set, the teams were back-and-forth with the score tied four times up to the 10-10 mark. Brown was then able to outscore PC 5-1 for the victory. Moriconi started the Bears' rally with a kill (11-10) while Grover and Ehlert alternated four consecutive kills for the victory. The Bears were efficient in the fifth set, recording a .474 hitting percentage.

For Providence, Addison Root and Emma Nelson posted 18 kills apiece and Allison Barber notched 50 assists. Defensively, Mackenzie Taylor had 19 digs.

Video of all Brown volleyball home contests and all Ivy League matches, home and away, will be broadcast live on ESPN+.