STORRS, Conn. – The UConn women's volleyball team finished the weekend tournament 1-1 following a loss to Lehigh and a win over Merrimack College. The win in their second game of the day is the first win for the Huskies in the new UConn Volleyball Center.
UConn vs. Lehigh
Game one of the day was a battle between UConn and Lehigh. Lehigh began the first set strong, jumping out to an early lead forcing the Huskies to play from behind most of the set. UConn did not back down as they clawed their way back to cut the Lehigh lead down to just two. The teams would trade blows back and forth. Lehigh eventually took the first set by a final of 25-22. Freshman Mya Ayro led the way for UConn in the first finishing with six kills.
In set two, the Huskies came out firing jumping to an early 12-9 lead. The three point lead was all they needed as they went on to go on three different scoring runs during the set including a 4-0 run to claim the set by a final of 25-12. Mya Ayro and Emma Werkmeister led the way for UConn with nine and seven kills respectively.
Set three was back and forth up until the final point. UConn jumped out to an early lead, but a late rally by Lehigh pushed the game past the typical 25 points. Mya Ayro and Emma Werkmeister continue to lead the Huskies, combining for 20 kills. Lehigh's attack remains balanced as seven players have registered a kill. UConn eventually took the third set by a final of 26-24 to take a 2-1 match lead heading into the fourth set. In a back and forth fourth set which featured seven lead changes and seven ties scores, Lehigh continued to fight, storming back to force a winner take all set 5. Through four sets, UConn totaled 57 kills to Lehigh 43.
In the fifth set, Lehigh jumped ahead early and did not look back. UConn did everything they could to cut into the Lehigh lead, but the balanced attack by the mountain hawks was too much for the Huskies. Despite the loss, freshman Mya Ayro showed up for the Huskies finishing with 16 kills followed by Emma Werkmeister with 11 and Jess Perry with 10.
Game 2: UConn vs. Merrimack
In the final game of the tournament, UConn and Merrimack were both looking to secure their first win of the weekend. The Huskies came out in set one firing and never looked back. UConn used a balanced attack to propel them to a 25-10 set one victory. The Huskies were led by Jess Perry, Mya Ayro, and Audrey Rome who all finished the set with three kills.
Merrimack found their stride in the second set as they held off a late UConn rally to win the set 25-22. The second set victory was Merrimack's first set win of the tournament. In the second set there were four ties and three lead changes. Freshman Mya Ayro continuing to lead the way for UConn as she has six kills through two sets. The Huskies retook momentum in the third set, jumping out to an early lead and forcing the warriors to play from behind. The two teams continued to trade blows but the Huskies eventually came away with the 25-20 set victory, to take a 2-1 match lead.
The Huskies carried the momentum from set three into set four as they jumped out to an early lead. The theme of the set was runs, as both teams went on scoring runs and looked ready to take the set. Ultimately UConn came away with a 25-21 set victory to secure their first win in the UConn Volleyball Center. Sophomore Jess Perry finished the game with 14 kills, followed by Emma Werkmeister and Mya Ayro who both finished with 10 kills.
The Huskies will have some time off before they welcome Sacred Heart to Storrs on Thursday September 7. The game will be streamed on UConn+.
