The Seton Hall Pirates, amidst conference tournament implications, swept the St. John’s Red Storm after a masterful team performance Wednesday night.
St. John’s was riding high coming into their match in South Orange, having won three of their last four matches by sweep before this showdown, though Seton Hall stole huge road victories from UConn and Providence, respectively.
After the Johnnies took the first point, the Hall came back with five straight points and continued to dominate the first set. The Pirates held a three-point lead throughout most of the first set before securing the victory, 25-17. Sophomore middle blocker Asli Subasili and freshman defensive specialist Hadlee Ackerman each had an ace apiece in the first set.
The second set saw much of the same, except with a lot more errors from St. John’s, who racked up five kills to 11 errors with a hit percentage of -.0214. Their performance led to the Hall taking the second set in the same fashion, 25-17.
St. John’s found life in the third set, though Seton Hall had already determined the outcome and took the final set, 25-20, to seal a must-win match for the Pirates.
Seton Hall’s X-factor was their defense, and no one was more vital to the team than junior middle blocker Hanna Tulli, who led the team with seven blocks out of the Pirates' 14 on the game and contributed six kills. Subasili followed closely with six blocks, to go with her two kills on the night. Senior outside hitter Bianca Bucciarelli led the Pirates with 11 kills, five digs and three blocks. The Red Storm struggled offensively all game, with 31 kills to 30 errors, translating a .009 hit percentage. Sophomore Erin Jones notably struggled, with seven kills to eight errors, and -.036 hit percentage. It is a far cry from her latest performances, as she had a .300 hit percentage in her last three games.
The Hall improves to 8-7 in conference play and 14-12 overall as they look to secure their spot in the BIG EAST tournament. The Pirates host the Creighton Bluejays on Friday, Nov. 10 at 6:00 pm.
John Misiewicz can be reached at john.misiewicz@student.shu.edu.
