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Lauren Hubert celebrates point in 3-1 win over Niagara
Joe Lehrman
1
Niagara Niag 11-12,7-5 MAAC
3
Winner Canisius Canis 12-11,8-4 MAAC
Niagara Niag
11-12,7-5 MAAC
1
Final
3
Canisius Canis
12-11,8-4 MAAC
Winner
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Niagara Niag 25 19 22 21 (1)
Canisius Canis 23 25 25 25 (3)

Game Recap: Volleyball |

Volleyball Downs Niagara on Dig Pink Night

Sophomore Lauren Hubert registered 15 kills and a season-high 20 digs to help lead Canisius to a four-set victory over long-time rival Niagara in MAAC volleyball action at the Koessler Athletic Center on Wednesday evening.
 
The Golden Griffins won the match by set scores of 23-25, 25-19, 25-22, 25-21. The win, Canisius' second straight and fifth in its last seven outings, improved the Blue and Gold to 12-11 overall and 8-4 in league play, while the Purple Eagles fell to 11-12 overall and 7-5 in conference contests.
 
Graduate student Sofia Hedqvist aided the Griffs with 13 kills, while junior Ella Bourque dished out 27 assists. Senior Kara Zaucha, sophomore Hannah Kos, junior Bella Mosquera and sophomore Kalia Reisma all notched three blocks a piece on the night en route to holding the Purple Eagles to a .109 hitting efficiency as a team.
 
Niagara's Kinga Wronska put down a match-high 18 kills for the Purple Eagles, while teammate Bella Peroni aided defensively with 24 digs in the losing effort.
 
Niagara jumped in front with a late comeback to take the first set 25-23. The Griffs led 17-13 midway through the set before the Purple Eagles took nine of the final 12 points to take a 1-0 advantage in the match.
 
In the second set, Canisius jumped out to a 10-4 advantage, forcing an early timeout from the visiting Purple Eagles. A few moments later, a pair of Niagara attack errors pushed the Canisius lead to eight points at 16-8. An 8-3 scoring surge by Niagara cut the Griffs' cushion to 19-16, but the Blue and Gold answered that rally with kills from Hubert, Kos and Mosquera to keep the home team in front en route to the 25-19 set victory.

The third set saw six lead changes before the media timeout, where Canisius led 15-11. The Niagara threatened later in the frame and trimmed Canisius' lead to 23-21 thanks to a 6-3 run, but kills from Zaucha and Hedqvist closed out the set at 25-22, putting the Griffs up 2-1 in the match.
 
In the final set, Canisius jumped out to an early 4-1 lead and eventually took a 16-8 advantage after a Niagara attack error. Trailing 20-12, the Purple Eagles made things interesting by scoring six-straight points to make the score 20-18, but Hubert, Hedqvist and a pair of Niagara attack errors sealed the night, as the Griffs won the match 3-1 thanks to the 25-21 victory in the set.
 
GAME NOTES
• Wednesday marked the 115th all-time volleyball match between the two schools, and the Griffs now lead the series 59-54-2.
• The win by Canisius ended Niagara's three-match win streak in the series, dating back to the 2022 season. This marks the first time these two teams have each posted a win on their home court in the regular-season series since 2021.
• Wednesday's win puts the Griffs over .500 for the first time since Aug. 30.
• Hubert's 17-kill performance is the 12th time this season where she has posted double-digit kills.
• Hubert is the first Griff other than senior libero Jillian Hanna to lead the team in digs this season. Hanna recorded 16 digs in the winning effort.
• Hanna had a match-high three service aces in the win. She leads the MAAC with her 42 aces this season, and Wednesday marked the eighth time this season where she's collected three-or more aces in a match.
• With the win, the Griffs earned one point in the annual Battle of the Bridge series, an all-sport rivalry series between Canisius and Niagara.
 
UP NEXT
Canisius will continue its five-match homestand on Saturday when the team plays host to Manhattan at the Koessler Athletic Center. Game time is set for noon, and the contest will be broadcast live on ESPN+.
 
SUPPORT CANISIUS VOLLEYBALL
Support the Canisius volleyball team in conjunction with the "More Than A Game" campaign. Your donation to the volleyball program helps our student-athletes continue to be champions in the community, in the classroom and in competition. To donate, CLICK HERE.

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