Game One
When and Where:
September 27, 2025 – Patchogue, NY
Records:
Emmanuel (MA) 13-1, 1-0 GNAC
St. Joseph's (L.I.) 5-2, 0-0 Skyline
The St. Joseph's University, New York (L.I.) women's volleyball team battled to a five-set thriller against nationally strong Emmanuel College (MA) on Saturday morning at the Danzi Center but came up just short, falling 3-2 (13-25, 23-25, 25-22, 25-15, 15-6).
Top Performers:
- Nina Vanderhoof led the Golden Eagles with 15 kills, adding a service ace and two block assists for 17.0 points.
- Luciana D'Ambrosio chipped in nine kills and two service aces.
- Setter Lauren Goss handed out 34 assists and contributed 11 digs.
- Defensively, libero Sarah Montefusco anchored the back row with 25 digs.
How It Happened:
- St. Joseph's stormed out with a 13–5 lead behind service aces from Goss and Isabella Juliano, then pulled away 25–13 to take the opener.
- The Golden Eagles erased an early 8–2 deficit, rallying behind Vanderhoof's kills to edge out a 25–23 win and go up 2–0.
- Momentum shifted as Emmanuel capitalized on late SJC errors, closing on a 6–2 run to steal the set 25–22.
- The Saints surged ahead quickly and never looked back, using a string of kills from Amber Hong and Letitia Bossou to even the match 25–15.
- Emmanuel dominated the decider, racing out to a 9–3 advantage and sealing the match 15–6 despite Vanderhoof's efforts to spark a comeback.
Game Two
When and Where:
September 27, 2025 – Patchogue, NY
Records:
St. Joseph's (L.I.) 6-2, 0-0 Skyline
Pratt 0-9, 0-0 Atlantic East
The Golden Eagles bounced back in their afternoon match with a decisive 3-0 sweep of Pratt Institute (25-18, 25-15, 25-16) in front of a supportive Danzi Center crowd.
Top Performers:
- Vanderhoof again paced the attack, hitting .462 with eight kills.
- Isabella Nieradko was a perfect 6-for-10 without an error, finishing with a .600 hitting percentage.
- Olivia Baumann contributed four kills on four swings (1.000).
- Setter Samantha Lund directed the offense with 26 assists while also serving up two aces.
- Montefusco collected another eight digs, while D'Ambrosio and Iya Tabada chipped in both offensively and defensively.
How It Happened:
- The Golden Eagles jumped out to an early five point lead in set one (8-3) before a rally from Pratt saw the Cannoneers bring the match to within one (11-10) but St. Joseph's held on for a set one victory (25-18)
- Set two was closely contested as SJLI held a one point lead midway through (15-14) before the Golden Eagles went on a 10-1 scoring run to claim set two (25-15)
- St. Joseph's closed out the match claiming the final set only giving up a lead early twice in the set as they closed out the day with a 25-16 victory
Up next:
The Golden Eagles return to action on Monday September 29, when they travel to Farmingdale St. for their first Skyline Conference matchup of the season at 7:00 pm.
