Merk Erupts as Pirates Hook Sharks, 3-1 - Seton Hall University Athletics
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 v...
10. Seton Hall 3, LIU 1 (F) Volleyball Final - Seton Hall University Athletics
10. Seton Hall 3, LIU 1 (F) Volleyball Final
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.
- 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.
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.
