BROOKLYN -- Pratt Institute hit a sizzling .352 as a team in the Cannoneers 3-0 win over Clinton Hill rival St. Joseph's in Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Conference women's volleyball play.
After posting the team's two lowest attack percentages in a win and a loss at the New Rochelle tri-match last weekend, Pratt totaled 45 kills to only seven errors Tuesday night. Four-time HVIAC Player of the Week Alice Vicente led the charge with match bests of 19 kills and a .548 attack percentage. Fellow sophomores Hannah Calderwood and Charlotte Burch followed with nine kills on 19 attempts and five kills on 13 error-free attempts, respectively, as Pratt improved to 12-2 overall, 4-1 in the HVIAC.
Clinging to an 11-10 lead, a pair of Diana Lezama kills and a Vicente service ace capped a 5-0 run to bust open Game 1, a 25-15 Cannoneers victory. The Bears jumped out to a 5-3 lead in the second set, and with the score tied 15-15, kills from Burch, Calderwood and freshman Abby Nagy forced a St. Joseph's timeout with Pratt on top 19-15. Back-to-back Vicente kills from setter Alli Houghton closed out the frame on a 10-2 Cannoneers run in the team's 25-17 win.
The Bears took an early lead in Game 3 thanks to three Anna Carbone aces in a 6-0 run that put St. Joe's on top 10-7. From that point on, Pratt took off on an 9-0 run fueled by five Vicente aces to go on top 19-10. Two kills from Lezama and one from Calderwood closed out another 25-17 win thanks to Pratt's match-best .429 team attack percentage in the third set.
The HVIAC assists leader, Houghton added to her totals with an impressive 39 assists over three sets. Vicente led the team with 16 digs, while Lezama added eight kills, 12 digs and a match-high two solo blocks.
With the win, Pratt secures second place in the HVIAC. The Cannoneers play host to York College in non-league play Thursday at 7:00 p.m. at the Pratt ARC.
