MONTCLAIR, N.J. (Oct. 30, 2026) – The U.S. Merchant Marine Academy women's volleyball team won the first two sets on Friday night, but host Montclair State rallied all the way back to hand the Mariners a tough five-set non-conference loss at the Panzer Athletic Center. USMMA fell by scores of 21-25, 27-29, 25-20, 25-15 and 15-8 to move to 19-4 overall, while the Red Hawks improved to 20-7.
Match File
Freshman
Anna Kelly (Orange, Texas) led the Mariners with 10 kills and added 10 digs for her second straight double-double, while junior
Maddie Mayer (Centennial, Colo.) finished with nine kills on a .375 hitting percentage, two service aces and five block assists.
Junior
Sydney Douglas (Herndon, Va.) added six kills and three aces, while senior
Erin Stillinger (Keller, Texas) put down five kills on just eight attacks for a .500 hitting percentage.
Freshman
Miranda Zeng (Cupertino, Calif.) handed out 37 assists, recorded 11 digs and added a service ace. Senior
Alexa Tipps (Palmdale, Calif.) led the Mariners defensively with 16 digs.
USMMA got off to a strong start in the opening set, scoring the first two points and maintaining control throughout much of the frame. The Mariners created enough separation down the stretch to secure the 25-21 victory and take an early lead in the match.
The second set turned into a marathon. Neither side could create much breathing room late, and Montclair State moved ahead, 27-26, before Kelly tied the score with a kill. Back-to-back Red Hawk attack errors, both coming on Mariner blocks, then gave USMMA the final two points and a 29-27 victory for a 2-0 advantage in the match.
Montclair State began its comeback in the third. The Red Hawks gradually built an advantage and held off the Mariners down the stretch for a 25-20 victory, cutting USMMA's lead in the match to 2-1.
The hosts then seized control in the fourth, hitting .407 with 13 kills against just two errors. Montclair State pulled away in the middle stages and forced a deciding fifth set with a 25-15 win.
The Red Hawks carried that momentum into the fifth, opening up an early advantage before extending the lead to 13-6. USMMA got kills from freshman
Sophie Phillips (Huffman, Texas) and an ace from freshman
Lanae DuBose (Baytown, Texas) to pull within 13-8, but Montclair State answered with the final two points to complete the comeback, 15-8.
Merchant Marine finished with 41 kills, 11 service aces and 51 digs. The Mariners also recorded 10 total blocks. Montclair State totaled 52 kills, 18 aces and 55 digs while hitting .166 for the match.
Isabelle Hawkinson led the Red Hawks with a match-high 15 kills, while Bryn Bautista added 11. Lucy Cornelius handed out a match-high 41 assists, and Aleena Whitehead recorded a match-high 18 digs.
The Mariners close out Skyline Conference play on Sunday, Nov. 1, when they take on Yeshiva beginning at noon. The match will be played at Baruch College in Manhattan.
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