UConn played Iona on September 5. Photos by Judah Shingleton / The Daily Campus
UConn women’s volleyball (3-3, 0-0 The American) finished a tournament known as the UConn Challenge, in which they finished 2-1. The Huskies came out on top against the Gaels and the Blue Devils, but fell in the fifth match to the Eagles.
Sophomore Caylee Parker, who made the pre-season All-Conference Team, came out fierce in front of the Huskies’ home crowd. Parker helped the Huskies by capitalizing on 18 of the Huskies’ 53 kills in their first matchup against Iona College (0-6, 0-0 MAAC), which couldn’t have been done without the redshirt sophomore setter Courtney Morris, who ended the night with 39 assists. Parker was a huge asset in the matchup against the Gaels on the defensive end as well ending the night with a double-double, adding 14 assists to her 18 kills.
Boston College (4-2, 0-0 ACC) added a loss to the Huskies record, yet it was an extremely close match, resulting in a two-point loss by the Huskies. While Parker kept her momentum with another double-double, freshmen Aset Baker-Falealili and Jasmine Davis were the ones to focus on. Baker-Falealili and Davis are two of the five newest faces that the Huskies added to the roster and when given a chance showed a glimpse into what’s ahead in the Huskies’ future. Libero Baker-Falealili enforced UConn’s defense, leading her to contribute 11 digs on the defensive end within the five sets played.
Davis, alongside Parker, was named to the All-Conference Team and exceeded the typical expectations of a freshman. The 6-foot-1 outside hitter stepped on the court against the Boston College Eagles and joined Parker with ending the game in a double-double. Davis executed 14 kills and 12 digs. She didn’t stop with the matchup against Boston College, continuing to dominate against Central Connecticut State University (2-4, 0-0 Northeast). Whether on defense or offense, the Blue Devils couldn’t stop Davis. She attained 15 digs and five blocks on the defensive end and seven kills on offense.
The Huskies are proving to be a force to be reckoned with this season, especially with the likes of Parker and the team’s freshmen.
The Huskies will spend their next three games in Athens, Ohio for the Ohio Invite. Two games will be played on Friday and the last one on Saturday.
Hanaisha Lewis is a campus correspondent for The Daily Campus. She can be reached via email at hanaisha.lewis@uconn.edu.
