CALDWELL, N.J. - The Caldwell College volleyball team handed Holy Family University only its second Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference loss Saturday afternoon, sweeping the Tigers in three sets, 25-21, 25-18, 27-25 in the George R. Newman Center. The victory is the Cougars' sixth in a row and gives them a 14-8 record overall and a 10-2 mark in the conference. Holy Family is now 19-11, 10-2 CACC.
Four kills by freshman right side Amber Mosher (Flanders, NJ/Mount Olive) and three each by sophomore outside hitter Cory Roesing (Secaucus, NJ/Secaucus) and freshman middle blocker Titilola Alao (Ossining, NY/Ossining) allowed the Cougars to take the first set, 25-21. In the second set, Caldwell hit .303, led by four kills apiece from Alao and Roesing, to cruise to a 25-18 win and a 2-0 lead in the match. Holy Family controlled the third set early until the Cougars recorded seven of eight points to take a 14-11 advantage. But the Tigers battled back and scored the next five points to regain the lead, 16-14.
The visitors held off the Cougars, and a kill by Kelsey Ross eventually made the score 24-22, putting the Tigers on the verge of taking the set. But kills by sophomore middle blocker Keesha Francois (Elkins Park, PA/Cheltenham) and Alao knotted the set at 24-24. A service ace by sophomore defensive specialist Lauren Herzog (Lodi, NJ/Lodi), pictured, put Caldwell one-point from victory, but another kill by Ross tied the score at 25-25. The Tigers' comeback would end there, as a pair of attack errors gave the Cougars their first victory over Holy Family since Caldwell re-established its volleyball program in 2006.
Alao finished with a team-best 11 kills and a .474 hitting percentage, with Mosher and Roesing adding eight kills apiece. Freshman setter Lauren Roth (Findlay, OH/Findlay) had 30 assists to key a Cougars' attack that hit .277 for the match. Defensively, sophomore libero Kathleen Estes (Lyndhurst, NJ/Lyndhurst) recorded 12 digs, while Alao finished with four blocks. Jennifer O'Connor and Katie Hornback each had eight kills to pace the Tigers.
The victory allows Caldwell to set a program record for longest winning streak and clinches the first winning regular season in the program's history.
The Cougars continue CACC play with a home match against Nyack College on Thursday, Oct. 30. The match is set to start at 7:00 p.m. in the Newman Center.
CC - 25 25 27
HFU - 21 18 25
