By Zoe Bailey | October 28, 2022
Photo Credit: UAlbany Athletics
Just falling short to Bryant, the Great Danes lost 3-1. The Bulldogs improved to 15-9 overall and 4-2 in America East play, while UAlbany dropped to 7-16 overall and 2-4 in America East play.
It was a tough fight, as the first set started with Bryant scoring the first two points, to which UAlbany quickly pushed back, upping the score 3-2 in the Great Danes’ favor. The Bulldogs began to pull ahead, breaking away with a 10-5 lead. The Great Danes didn’t back down, bringing the score to 14-12 still in Bryant’s favor leading them to call for their first timeout. Upon resuming the game, the Bulldogs pulled the deficit back to 21-18. Unable to fully shake the Danes off their heels the game saw four ties nearing the end of the set, in which the Bulldogs took with a two point advantage, 26-24.
In the second set, UAlbany claimed the lead 8-4, to which Bryant responded to tie the match 9-9. The two found themselves circling one another with three lead changes, the Bulldogs able to hold on with multiple ties until the Great Danes edged them out and claimed the set, 25-23.
This momentum followed the Great Danes into the third set where they pulled ahead with a 12-10 lead. The Bulldogs, not to be pushed back, took the advantage later on, gaining a four-point lead at 21-17. Albany strived for a comeback, but were held back by the Bulldogs who won the set, 25-21.
UAlbany, not to be pinned down, opened the fourth set with four unanswered points before forcing another timeout from Bryant while up 6-1. The Bulldogs pushed back, cutting into the lead 14-11, tying with the Great Danes at 19. After eight ties in extra points, Bryant took the fourth set with a score of 33-31, ending the match 3-1 in their favor.
Even with a loss, there were still excellent performances from women on the team. Freshman Anna Myhal had a team high of 16 kills, followed by junior Hannah Rowe who scored 11. Another junior player, Kaleigh Fitzgerald served a game-high of three aces, with setters sophomore Zosia Szczotkiewicz providing 26 assists and senior Malea Stantion notching 21. UAlbany defenders, senior Charlotte Macken tallied 23 digs with sophomore Anissa Wong supporting with four blocks, rounding out a tight game and solid effort from the UAlbany Great Danes.
“It was a tough outing tonight," coach Josh Pickard said. "The team battled and came up just short. All of our sets with Bryant have been close and this was no different.”
The Great Danes’ next game is Sunday, Oct. 30th at NJIT (New Jersey Institute of Technology).
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