Following a narrow 3-2 victory over St. John’s University on Friday, the University of Connecticut volleyball team lost their matchup against fellow Big East opponent Seton Hall University to end the Huskies’ six-game win streak.
After splitting the first four sets against St. John’s on Friday, the Huskies narrowly pulled out a victory, outscoring the Red Storm 15-12 in the decisive fifth set. In the set, St. John’s jumped out to a 10-5 quick lead, but the Huskies went on an 8-0 run to pull ahead 13-10. St. John’s would record two more points to pull within 13-12, but Caylee Parker and Kennadie Jake-Turner tallied back-to-back kills to seal the win for UConn.
UConn’s Parker led all players with 22 kills, while McKayla Wuensch recorded a game-high 44 assists to further extend her team lead. Jasmine Davis led UConn with five aces and 12 digs, while Davis, Jake-Turner and Allie Garland all recorded four blocks.
After Friday’s victory, UConn had officially won both of their matchups against St. John’s this season. Sweeping the Red Storm in their first matchup, the Huskies ultimately recorded a convincing 6-2 cumulative set record against St. John’s this season. With the win, UConn also claimed one of the final two spots in this year’s Big East Tournament.
With the victory, the Huskies were able to extend their winning streak to a season-high six games. The game also marked the first time that UConn recorded a 20-win season since 2008, and the first time that they have reached 12 Big East wins in program history.
After Friday’s victory, the Huskies traveled to New Jersey for their final road matchup of the season against the Seton Hall Pirates. After splitting the first two sets, the Pirates narrowly bested the Huskies 25-23 in both the third and fourth sets to steal the win on senior night.
After falling behind in the third and fourth sets, the Huskies battled back to take the lead in both. However, Seton Hall fended off UConn’s late push to take control of the game and earn the hard-fought victory over a superior Huskies roster.
Once again, UConn’s Parker led all players with 17 kills while also finishing with a game-high five blocks. Wuensch finished with 40 assists, and Karly Berkland paced both teams with 17 digs.
The loss ended the Huskies’ six-game win streak that began on Oct. 24 with a win against DePaul. The weekend win and loss bring Connecticut’s overall record to 20-8 while going an impressive 12-4 in Big East Conference play.
UConn’s final two regular season games will come against Big East opponents, taking on Butler University this Thursday and Xavier University on Friday, both at Gampel Pavilion.
