After splitting its final pair of home matchups, the Binghamton volleyball team was outworked Sunday afternoon by conference-leading New Hampshire by a score of 3-1.
This matchup capped off the regular seasons for both the Bearcats (13-13, 7-5 America East) and the Wildcats (19-10, 10-2 AE). With the win, UNH was crowned AE regular-season conference champion for the fourth straight season.
The first set was highly contested, as each team traded points for most of the match. Both squads were neck-and-neck until an error by the Bearcats spurred an 18-14 lead for UNH. Following a kill by BU junior middle hitter Kristella Morina, UNH hung on with four straight kills to put away the set, 25-20.
After dropping the first game of the series, BU bounced back fiercely to pick up its first win in the match during the second frame. After leading for a majority of the set, UNH went on a run to tie the match at 18. In response, freshman outside hitter Lauren Kornmann and sophomore outside hitter Erin Shultz each contributed a kill to put the match out of reach.
Even though the score was tied at 7-7 early in the match, the third set did not look promising for the Bearcats. UNH went on to take a 17-13 lead forcing a BU timeout. BU regrouped and regained focus, capturing two points behind kills from Shultz and junior setter Sarah Ngo to cut the lead to two. Unable to trim the deficit further and contain the Wildcats, BU fell by a score of 25-19.
The afternoon contest worsened for the Bearcats during the fourth and decisive set. BU possessed a short-lived 7-5 lead in the opening sequences. UNH countered with a deflating nine-point run in which BU made several crucial errors. Kornmann attempted to salvage the match with multiple points down the stretch, but BU inevitably fell short, mainly due to errors, at 25-16.
“We didn’t control the ball well on our side,” said BU head coach Glenn Kiriyama. “It was tough, but [the Wildcats] are a solid team. They dug a lot of our hits and just couldn’t put one away.”
Although the Bearcats did not come out on top Sunday afternoon, the team is still headed toward postseason play this upcoming weekend. The Bearcats saw success in the regular season, especially in conference play. BU posted an over .500 record in AE matchups and solidified its position as a No. 4 seed for the AE Volleyball Championship.
“Everyday we are trying to get a little bit better,” Kiriyama said. “We are working on some small things and trying to keep everyone healthy down the stretch. We are looking forward to the rematch against UNH and hopefully we can up our game a little bit.”
BU will face off against UNH again during the first round of the playoffs.
“I’m glad we got to play here [New Hampshire] today to just get them used to the gym and the facilities here,” Kiriyama said. “We have been in some really tight matches before so they’ve been under some pressure in matches. We expect them to be able to execute when it comes down to it.”
The Bearcats are set to return to New Hampshire this Friday for their first matchup of the playoffs against the Wildcats. First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m. from Lundholm Gymnasium in Durham, New Hampshire.