Moon Township, Pa. – Robert Morris University volleyball junior middle blocker Emma Granger broke the program career record for service aces and set a new personal single-match standard for kills as the Colonials remained unbeaten at the UPMC Events Center with a four-set victory (26-24, 25-16, 18-25, 27-25) over Bryant this evening in Northeast Conference (NEC) action.
Granger's 20 kills and nine blocks (one solo) set the tone for Robert Morris (21-3, 11-0 NEC) in its biggest home test yet. The Colonials recorded 15.0 total team blocks and hit .224 for the match, with Granger's historic ace in the second set being the 162nd to her name and the hosts' lone one on the night.
Whitney Brown posted a 49-assist, 11-dig double-double for RMU, dishing out the majority of her helpers to the trio of Granger, Maria Alfano (12 kills), and Alyssa Hudak (10 kills). The three all hit over .300 for the match, with Granger's .459 rate above all. Nikolette Zanolli (18 digs) and Erika Wilt (12 digs) joined Brown in the double-digit club for digs.
Bryant (14-14, 9-3 NEC) held its own in the first set, trading blows with the Colonials before using a 7-2 surge to take a 21-16 lead. RMU swung back with a 4-0 run, thanks to a pair of Lauren Kolenik kills and a Granger point to force a Bulldogs timeout.
The Colonials fired long on the serve out of the break, but Granger came back on the following point with a kill. RMU then had set point before another service error derailed that, with a Bryant block following that up to make it 24-24. However, the Colonials survived after Granger struck with her fifth kill of the opening stanza and chipped in with Brown to reject an Emma McGovern attack.
The Bulldogs started with a 5-0 run to begin the second set, but RMU worked its way back on the back of five Granger points. After the visitors burned a timeout, the Colonials kept building upon their lead, using a 10-4 rally to make it 18-10. Bryant could only pull within six from there, as Hudak finished things off with a kill at 25-16.
After falling in the third set, 25-18, RMU started the fourth with three of the first four points. Though the Bulldogs were able to grab the lead shortly after, the Colonials kept fighting back and pushed the gap to five points at 20-15 with a solo block from Alfano.
Bryant answered with a three-point rally to force a RMU timeout, then pulled within one at 22-21 with a McGovern kill. Two Granger kills offset one from the Bulldogs to force match point, but Bryant kept clawing back to knot it at 24-24 and 25-25. However, the visitors missed on the ensuing serve and followed that up with an error to give the Colonials another conference victory.
Kristie Tuxford, who played at RMU from 1992-95 and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2001, previously held the program record for service aces with 161.
Brown's double-double was her ninth of the season.
The Bulldogs' victory in the third set marked the first time since Aug. 31 that the Colonials have lost a set at home.
Dale Starr, the all-time winningest coach in RMU volleyball history, is now one NEC win shy of 100 and three total victories away from 300 for his career.
Robert Morris continues its four-match home stand tomorrow at 5:00 p.m. when it hosts second-place Sacred Heart (14-10, 9-2).
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