CASTLETON, VT. – The University of Southern Maine volleyball program snapped their four-match losing streak as they swept through a tri-match hosted by Little East Conference opponent Castleton University Saturday morning. The Huskies did not lose a set as they made quick work of conference foe Castleton 3-0 in game one while knocking off previously undefeated Fisher College 3-0 in game two. The wins move the Huskies to 4-6 overall and 1-0 LEC while the Spartans and Falcons fall to 3-4, 0-1 LEC, and 5-1 respectively.  
 
When and Where: Saturday, September 18, 2021 – Castleton University – Glenbrook Gymnasium
 
Game One Score: Huskies 3, Spartans 0 (25-21, 25-10, 25-17)
 
Game One History: This was the seventh meeting between the two programs. The Huskies are a perfect 7-0 against the Spartans in the series.
 
Game One Standout Huskies: freshman outside hitter Alizia Lagando (Huron, OH): 12 kills, .600 hitting%, 10 digs, double-double, three service aces. Sophomore outside hitter Brianna Delloiacono (Moodus, CT): 12 kills, .478 hitting%, one dig.
 
Game One Standout Spartan: Lizzie Goodrich: eight kills, two digs, one ace, one block.
 
How It Happened, Game One: 
 
-Castleton jumped in front 5-2 early in the opening set due to a service ace that was perfectly placed by Mackenzie Wade. Still trailing by three, Southern Maine erupted for six straight markers using three kills off the swing of Delloiacono, a freshman setter Phoebe Slovenski (Cape Neddick, ME) ace and a senior setter Sophie Lindsay (Sierra Madre, CA) kill to move ahead 11-8. Castleton eventually came within one via a Cailin Moskow ace, but USM responded with a 7-3 spurt to increase their edge to 18-13. Senior right side Kim Grant (Saco, ME) kept USM ahead by five, but four of the next five points were scored by Castleton as they trailed by two, 21-19. The guests settled in for the remainder of the set using back-to-back Lagando kills to put the Huskies on the brink of match point. Lagando then completed the set one victory tipping home the ball from the left pin.
 
-In the second set, Southern Maine got off to a fast start leading 4-1 following a freshman middle blocker Sarah Haggerty (Lisbon, ME) mash. Their lead expanded to 9-4 as Lagando converted a set by Lindsay for a kill. Three straight from Castleton including a Jen Halliday ace put them down two 9-7. However, Lindsay served back-to-back aces to regain a four-point 12-7 margin. Lindsay's two service aces were part of a 10-1 Husky binge as the navy and gold held a commanding 19-8 advantage over the Spartans. Castleton put two points together to pull within nine, but USM tallied the final six points to take a commanding 2-0 match lead.
 
-Early in the third set a Lindsay kill combined with a Grant kill put their squad ahead 4-2. Behind by a 5-4 score, USM put together an 8-2 run to lead 12-7 thanks to a sophomore defensive specialist Sierra Castonguay (Nottingham, NH) ace. Two straight miscues gave Castleton life as they were behind 12-9. The Huskies scored the next four points to lead 16-9 due to another Lagando kill. A Moskow ace pulled Castleton within four, 20-16, but that was the closest they could come as the Huskies completed the sweep.
 
Inside The Box Score, Game One: 
 
-Southern Maine hit a season-best .382 in the first match and hit a single set season-high .440 in the third set
-Delloiacono had six of the teams 16 kills in the first set hitting .556 while Lagando did most of her work late recording three of her four kills over the final couple of points (.444%).
-Castleton hit .143 in the second set and had more attack errors (11) than kills (7).
-Southern Maine had seven service aces in the second set and 12 total compared to Castleton's seven.
-Phoebe Slovenski matched a career-high with four service aces (4 – vs. Lasell, September 11, 2021).
 
 
Game Two Score: Huskies 3, Falcons 0 (25-18, 26-24, 25-23)
 
Game Two History: This is the first meeting between the two programs. The Huskies are 1-0 in the series.
 
Game Two Standout Huskies: Alizia Lagando: career-high 15 kills, 14 digs, double-double .333 hitting%, Sophie Lindsay: 32 assists, six kills, seven digs, .357 hitting%
 
Game Two Standout Falcon: Macy Barnes: 14 kills, 10 digs, double-double, two blocks, one ace, one assist, .306 hitting%
 
How It Happened, Game Two: 
 
-With the opening set deadlocked at 2-2 the Huskies went on a set shaping 11-3 scoring binge getting consecutive aces off the serve of Phoebe Slovenski to lead 13-5 and making Fisher use the first timeout in the process. Fisher rallied scoring five of the next six points to pull within four, 14-10. A Lagando kill stopped the Falcons' momentum temporarily, but they notched the next three points, two kills, and an ace to make it a 15-13 first set in favor of USM. Fisher continued with their 11-3 scoring run getting a dual block by Lillian Figueroa and Macy Barnes to even the margin at 16-16. Holding a two-point lead, Delloiacono gave her squad some breathing room notching two straight kills combined with a freshman middle hitter Madison Zimmer (Regina, SK, Canada) bash to put Southern Maine two points away from a first set victory. Delloiacono wrapped up the set with a kill that clanked off the liberos arm and went out of play. 
 
-Fisher took a 5-3 edge in the second set until a Falcons service error and a Lindsay skip set kill tied the set at 5-5. Fisher was awarded the next point then the Huskies outscored their opponents 6-1 getting four of their six points due to Fisher attack errors to lead 11-7. Holding a 14-9 advantage, the Falcons racked up three in a row to come within two, 14-12. With the Huskies ahead 15-12, their counterparts notched five in a row to move in the driver's seat 17-15. The Falcons lead was short-lived when the Huskies tied the game at 19-19 via a Fisher attack error. Behind 22-20, the Huskies came back for set point getting three miscues and a Lagando tip into the open middle section of the floor. Fisher used their final timeout and got a kill to tie the game at 24-24 as the teams needed extra serves to decide the winner. USM did not need to go far as a Lindsay kill and Falcons attack error gave the Huskies their second 2-0 lead of the day.
 
-Lagando kickstarted the third set producing two kills combined with a block by her and Haggerty to push USM ahead 3-0 in the early portion. Fisher would go on a 5-1 mini-run to take their first lead of the set, 5-4 via two consecutive attack errors. The teams traded blows back and forth until an 8-1 USM spurt put them in front 17-11 due to two straight Haggerty kills. Fisher remained in the match down five as they got a dual block near the right pin and a Macy Barnes kill to come within one at 19-18. The third set remained close and tied three times down the stretch at 20-20, 22-22, and 23-23. Lindsay tipped the ball from the middle portion of the net near the backline and Fisher libero Lia Aime rocked the ball out of bounds to clinch the sweep for the Huskies. 
 
Inside The Box Score, Game Two: 
 
-As she did in the first game, Delloiacono started strong tallying seven of the Husky's 14 kills while hitting .417 in the opening set.
-Lagando recorded a career-high 15 kills in the match and had her fifth straight game with double-digit digs.
-Southern Maine hit a match-high .316 in the third set.
 
Up Next: The navy and gold wrap up their six-game road swing on Tuesday, September 21st when they head north to Bangor to take on non-conference opponent Husson University at 7:00 p.m.

Southern Maine Athletics has gone to fully digital game programs, please click this link to access the game programs to future Husky home events!