The New York University women's volleyball team moved on in the 2019 Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Championship, defeating host Marywood University in the quarterfinal round of the tournament on Saturday, November 16, in Scranton, PA.
NYU (26-7) defeated the Pacers (14-20) in three sets (25-15, 25-19, 25-21).
The Violets got off to a quick start in the opening set against Marywood, though the Pacers did get stronger as the match continued.
Marywood jumped out to an early 9-4 lead in the second set, but NYU was able to tie the game at 10, take the lead and never look back.
In the third set, the teams traded points for a while. Tied at 20-20, NYU scored three straight to go ahead for good. The Violets clinched the set on a service ace by Abby Ausmus (San Diego, CA/La Jolla Country Day School).
"We had a strong start to postseason," said Head Coach Andrew Brown. "Both of our middles (Emily Kleck (Fisher, IN/Cathedral) and Ausmus) were extremely effective."
Kleck and Haley Holz (Palatine, IL /Palatine) led NYU in kills with seven, while Maddie DeJong (Houston, TX/Second Baptist School) chipped in with six. Nicole Dao (Bethesda, MD/The Academy of Holy Cross) led the squad in assists with 22. Jacqueline Kupeli amd Lauren Robinson (Honolulu, HI/Punahou School) led the way with 10 digs each.
"Our blocks remained very physical, and we look to build off of today's effort in the semifinals tomorrow," Brown explained.
The Violets return to the court for the semifinals at 11:00am on Sunday when they take on the winner of the Grove City College/Misericordia University matchup. The winner will advance to the championship at 5:00pm.
