Volleyball Opens Season with Split in Tri-Match

NEW HAVEN, Conn. - Thomas Jefferson University women's volleyball (1-1) began their season on the road in a tri-match on Saturday afternoon action. The Rams earned a hard fought 3-2 win over St. Thomas Aquinas while suffering a setback to Southern Connecticut State University 3-0. 

WHAT HAPPENED 
GAME ONE: W, 3-2 vs St. Thomas Aquinas 

• The Spartans took a hold of the first set, getting a 25-13 victory. The Rams got as close as five points in the first 

• Jefferson battled in the second, fighting their way to a 25-15 win to tie the series up. Emily McKenna dropped five of her team-leading 13 kills in that set. Gabby Titus put two kills during that stretch 

• The third set saw both teams trade points, with the Rams getting ahead 16-13 from a seven-point swing. St. Thomas Aquinas responded with seven straight of their own before earning the final three points to take set three 

• The Rams looked to bounce back in the fourth, battling with the Spartans before seeing themselves trail 18-14. Two McKenna service aces and a Evelyn Banks blocked got Jefferson the lead 19-18. After continuous back-and-forth point trades, the Rams secured the final point to take the fourth set 25-23 and force a fifth set 

• Jefferson got out to an early 6-3 lead which they would hold onto the rest of the way. After a few three-point runs, the Rams went to take the final six and earn the 3-2 win in the first match of the season 

QUICK HITS 
Emily McKenna: 13 kills, 3 service aces 
Morgan Martin: 9 kills, 2 blocks 
Gabby Titus: 9 kills, 9 service aces 
Meredith Adams: 24 assists, 12 digs 
Evelynn Mufalli: 14 assists, 2 digs 
Kate Hines: 13 digs, 3 assists 

GAME TWO: L, 3-0 VS Southern Connecticut State 

• First set looked to go in the Owls favor, going ahead 18-12. Jefferson refused to go down quietly, going on a 12-5 run that put the Rams one point away from victory. Southern Connecticut ended taking four of the final five points to earn a 27-25 win in the first set. McKenna had four kills in the first, Titus registered three, and Banks added two during the first 

• Jefferson got out ahead again in the second, going up 8-3 over the Owls. Southern Connecticut put a 9-2 run to take the lead that they wouldn't relinquish, earning a 25-20 second set win over the Rams 

• Third set went in similar fashion as Rams got out early 6-1 before the Owls took the lead 14-11. Jefferson went on a 6-1 run to retake the lead, but Southern Connecticut ended the third with a 10-5 streak that ended the set 25-22 and earned the sweep for the Owls 

QUICK HITS 
Emily McKenna: 8 kills, 6 digs 
Evelyn Banks: 5 kills, 2 blocks 
Meredith Adams: 12 assists, 3 digs 
Kate Hines: 13 digs, 4 assists 

UP NEXT 
Jefferson will have their home opener on Tuesday, September 9 at 6 p.m. when the Rams take on Lincoln University (Pa.) in non-conference action.