Giving up big money to be the GM at St. Bonaventure

Reagan Merk goes off for career-highs of 19 kills and 21 digs.

BROOKLYN – Three Pirates collected double-doubles and senior Reagan Merk (Huntington Beach, Calif.) had career-highs of 19 kills and 21 digs as the Seton Hall women's volleyball team defeated LIU, 3-1 (25-19, 25-22, 13-25, 25-20), on Tuesday.

Seton Hall has now won six of its last seven matches and picks up its first true road victory of the season.

Merk had a match-high 19 kills to go with 21 digs, three assists and two aces in a career-best performance. Senior Maddie Klungel (Napa, Calif.) tallied a team-high 27 assists, 14 digs, three kills, three blocks and two aces. Freshman Gwen Adler (Barrington, Ill.) added 14 assists and a career-high 16 digs.

Sophomore Rylee Nelson (Mazeppa, Minn.) led The Hall and matched her career-high with 24 digs.

SET 1:
Although close early, Seton Hall never trailed in the opening set. Leading 12-10, The Hall scored three of the next four points and forced an early LIU timeout. Back-to-back blocks by Asli Subasili (Tekirdag, Turkiye) put the Pirates on top, 22-16. A kill by Jenna Walsh (Foothill Ranch, Calif.) capped a 25-19 first set victory. The Hall held LIU to a .000 attack percentage in set one.

SET 2:
In set two, The Hall raced out to a 8-2 lead as LIU had trouble with its serve/receive. Four of The Hall's first eight points were on aces, three of which came from Subasili. Trailing 15-12, LIU scored five of the next six points to grab its first lead of the match, 18-16. With LIU leading, 22-20, back-to-back kills by Grace Turner (La Grange Highlands, Ill.) and Klungel tied the score at 22 and LIU took a timeout. Out of the break, The Hall scored the last three points, and a service ace by Mason Woo (Burbank, Calif.) won the second set for The Hall, 25-22.

SET 3:
Seton Hall never led in set three and had only a -.053 attack percentage. A kill by Merk cut The Hall's deficit to 15-9, but LIU responded with a 7-2 run to grab a commanding 22-11 lead. The Sharks cruised to a 25-13 victory.

SET 4:
In between sets, The Hall arose from its third-set funk and jumped out to a 9-3 lead in set four. A kill by Turner put the Pirates up 16-10, but the Sharks responded with four straight points and forced a Seton Hall timeout. Leading 22-19, The Hall closed out the match with three of the final four points. A kill by Senna Roberts-Navarro (Honolulu, Hawaii) provided the clincher, 25-20. Merk had six kills, no attack errors and six digs in the fourth set alone.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

• Merk had career-highs of 19 kills and 21 digs to go with three assists and two aces.
• Klungel had a team-high 27 assists, 14 digs, three kills and two aces.
• Adler tallied 14 assists, a career-high 16 digs and two kills.
• Nelson matched her career-best with 24 digs to go with four assists.
• Graduate student Perri Lucas (Chicago, Ill.) had 11 kills and three digs.
• Turner notched seven kills, no attack errors, and a .467 attack percentage.
• Seton Hall recorded a .161 attack percentage for the match, while LIU attacked at .154.
• The Pirates had 52 kills, while Long Island had 41.
• The Hall recorded 94 digs, while the Sharks had 90.
• Seton Hall collected 6.0 blocks and LIU had 10.5.

NEWS & NOTES:

• The Hall improves to 6-4 on the season, while LIU drops to 1-9.
• Seton Hall is now 10-3 all-time against the Sharks.
• Despite Seton Hall's 6-4 record, the Pirates won the opening set for only the third time this season. However, The Hall is 5-1 in the fourth set this year.
• The Pirates' 13 points in set three are the fewest they've scored in a single-set this season.
• Merk's double-double is her team-leading fourth of the season.
• Klungel's double-double is her second of the season and the sixth of her career.
• Adler's double-double is the second of her career.
• Seton Hall's last five matches have all been four-set affairs (4-1).
• Nelson has now reached 20 digs in a single match four times this season.
• The Pirates are 6-0 when having a higher attack percentage.
• It's the first time this season that three Pirates have recorded double-doubles in the same match. The last time they accomplished the feat was on Aug. 26, 2023 at UC Irvine.
• Seton Hall's 94 team digs are a season-high and the most during the head coach Shannon Thompson era.

UP NEXT:
The Pirates will return to action on Saturday, September 21 when they make the short trip to the Bronx for a match at Fordham. Its start is scheduled for 4:30 p.m.