WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
>> Saint Francis falls in the second game of the Rutgers Tournament, 3-1 to New Hampshire in non-conference women's volleyball action on Friday
>> Korrin Burns finished the game with 22 kills, while Gwen Atkins tied her career high with 12 kills, and Poloma Gonzalez Jaramillo also had 12 kills in the match.
>> Chandler Alter reached double figures in digs for the first time in her Red Flash career.
TURNING POINT OF THE GAME
After the Red Flash won a marathon first set thanks to an 8-3 run to end the set, Saint Francis lost the following three sets. The Loretto program held a 6-2 edge in the second set and a 15-10 lead in the third set, but New Hampshire rallied both times to take each set and went on to win the four-set match in the second meeting between the two teams, marking the first since 1996.Â
FLASH MOMENTSÂ
Trailing 23-20 in the first set, the Red Flash closed the set on an 8-3 run to take the opening set 28-26. Paloma Gonzalez Jaramillo gave Saint Francis a 27-26 lead on her sixth kill of the set before Alexa Chapla's service ace to win the set.
Just like the first set, the Red Flash had a hot start in the second set after scoring six of the first eight points in the frame. Burns fueled the run with three kills.
In the third set, Gwen Atkins powered a 5-0 run with three kills to give Saint Francis a 15-10 advantage.Â
Saint Francis staged a late comeback attempt in the fourth set to make it a three-point game twice late in the set. Trailing 22-15, Burns had three kills to power a 4-0 spurt and added another kill to trim the margin to 23-20, but could get no closer.
FLASH NUGGETS
Burns, the two-time NEC Player of the Week, has 20 kills in a game in five of the eight matches this season and at least 15 kills in all but one match this season.Â
Jaramillo registered her second 10+ kill performance in a Red Flash uniform, marking the sixth time in her career that she has reached the mark, having achieved it four times with Stonehill last season. The 12 kills are the third most in her career and the second most with the Loretto program after a career-high 15 against Robert Morris on August 30.
Atkins, the current NEC Rookie of the Week, matched her career high in kills she set against Siena in the first game of the Altoona Grand Red Flash Classic on September 5. She has posted double-figure kills twice this season.Â
Alter registered 10 digs for the first time in the red and black. It is the 11th time in Alter's career she has reached double figures after turning the trick 10 times at Tennessee Chattanooga.Â
Alexandra Sappia finished the match with 43 assists. It is the fourth time this season she has reached 40 assists in a game and the 12th time in her career. Sappia has earned NEC Prime Performer distinction in the first two weeks of the season.
Chapla registered a career-high four service aces, including the one that earned the Red Flash the first set. The senior had two games with a pair of aces coming into the match, including against Siena one week ago.Â
NEXT ON TAP
Saint Francis wraps up its three games in the Garden State at former NEC foe Rider on Saturday at 6 p.m. Match time is 6 p.m. The Red Flash has won the last five in the series against the Broncs.