Career nights for Kingi, Nesterov power Bulldogs to 3-1 win over Holy Cross

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Freshman outside hitter Kristin Kingi (Thousand Oaks, Calif.) posted a career-high 21 kills to lead the Bryant University volleyball team to a 3-1 win over Holy Cross Tuesday night to round out non-conference play at the Chace Athletic Center.

Kingi's career day came along with a .261 attack percentage, two aces and seven digs, while classmate Sophie Hoekstra (Millersville, Md.) added 12 kills and sophomore Ally Lunsford (Minneola, Fla.) chipped in 11 more with a .529 attack percentage. The Bulldogs (13-10) saw a career-high 59 assists from sophomore setter Vika Nesterov (Kfar Saba, Israel) (3 blocks), while senior libero Debora Magalhaes (Belo Horizonte, Brazil) paced the match defensively with 25 digs.

The Crusaders (5-14) were led by 16 kills from Mandy Sifferlen with another 14 coming from Lynsey Petersen. Natalie Welsch contributed 10 kills for the visitors, while Caroline Wells picked up a double-double with 33 assists and 10 digs. M.C. Magner paced the Holy Cross defense with 20 digs.

A quick-tempoed first set stayed tight until a seven-point Bulldog run to 21-14, forcing a Holy Cross timeout. The Crusaders would close the gap to 23-19, but a Taylor Onoyan (Crystal Lake, Ill.) (7 kills) kill would put the game away, 25-19.

Kingi paced a high-powered Bulldog offense in the second, registering 10 kills in the frame. The Bulldogs never trailed in the stanza, also backed by strong performances from Nesterov (19 assists) and Magalhaes (9 digs) in the 25-19 win to take a 2-0 match lead.

Holy Cross sped out to a 10-4 advantage in the third, but the Bulldogs would claw their way back, tying the set at 16-16 after Kingi's 20th kill of the match. The home side would take its first lead of the frame from there, going up 19-16 to force a Holy Cross timeout. The Crusaders would knot the game again at 22-22, and took over a one-point edge before the Bulldogs would call for a break of their own. But two attack errors would do the Bulldogs in, as the visitors cut their deficit to 2-1 with a 25-23 victory.

Holy Cross again took the early lead in the fourth, but a Magalhaes ace put the Bulldogs back in front, 15-14, midway through the set. The frame stayed close, and the score would remain tied at 22-22. But the Bulldogs would rally to score the next three-straight points for the 25-22 win, taking the match, 3-1, and sweeping the two-contest season series.

Bryant outhit the Crusaders, .308 to .245, on the night and registered an impressive 68 kills as a unit. The team served up five aces to Holy Cross's nine.

With the win, the Bulldogs wrap up non-conference play with an even 9-9 record. Bryant returns to Northeast Conference action for a weekend set against Robert Morris (Saturday at 5 p.m.) and Saint Francis U. (Sunday at 1 p.m.).