Huynh Triple-Double Helps Saints to 3-2 Victory Over Pilgrims

HENNIKER, N.H. – After losses in set one and set three, wins in the other three sets gave Emmanuel Saints women's volleyball a come-from-behind, 3-2 (19-25, 25-18, 16-25, 25-19, 15-11) victory over New England College on Wednesday night in Great Northeast Athletic Conference play.

In the deciding set, the Saints jumped out to a 6-2 lead, but a Pilgrims timeout slowed the momentum as three straight NEC points had them trailing 6-5. The points bounced back and forth until the Saints claimed the last three points of the match to win the set 15-11. Two handling errors by the Pilgrims and a Saints kill led to the match-ending sequence.

In the first, the Saints fell behind early as the Pilgrims lead grew through the middle of the stanza. NEC led by as many as eight on their way to a 25-19 set win.

The Saints came back from an early deficit in the second as an early New England run had Emmanuel trailing 8-1. An 11-4 EC spurt tied things at 12-12 while another key Emmanuel run at the end of the set of 5-0, helped lead the Saints to a 25-18 win.

In the third, the Pilgrims wouldn't squander their early advantage, leading by as many as a half-dozen through the early and middle parts of the set. New England ended their third set win with a 5-0 run of their own, claiming the set 25-16.

The fourth set was tied at 14-14 but Emmanuel forced the fifth and deciding set with the help of a 9-3 run to hold a 23-17 advantage. A Saints kill and Pilgrims attack error would eventually force a deciding set with EC winning the fourth, 25-19.

Saints first-year Kason Huynh (Mission Viejo, Calif.) finished with a triple-double, ending the night with 11 kills, 14 digs, and 23 assists. Sophomore Isabella Marquez (Pembroke Pines, Fla.) had a career-high 18 kills to go with 13 digs. Senior Seana Phillips (Middleboro, Mass.) chipped in with eight kills while junior Paula Tanguilig (Sandwich, Mass.) had a team-high 20 digs.

Pilgrims sophomore Lily-Anne Heywood (Derry, N.H.) had a team-high 13 kills matched with 14 digs while hitting .281 on the night. Junior Savannah Pilialoha (Waipahu, Hawaii) added nine kills and 14 digs. Sophomore Krissy Cardello (Peabody, Mass.) led all players with 21 digs.

Emmanuel (8-3, 3-0 GNAC) continues their season with a tri-match on Saturday, Sept. 30, traveling to Norwich for matches with the Cadets and Elms, starting at 11:00 a.m. The Pilgrims host Roger Williams on Sept. 30 for a non-conference match at 2:00 p.m.