St. John's University Athletics
St. John's University
11-4,2-0Big East
Connecticut
6-7,0-2Big East
St. John’s Wins Five Set Thriller Against Connecticut
9/24/2022 9:38:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
QUEENS, N.Y. (Sept. 24, 2022) – The St. John's volleyball team won a back-and-forth five set match against Connecticut on Saturday night at Carnesecca Arena.
In taking a match that featured 49 ties and 26 lead changes, the Red Storm improved to 11-4 overall and 2-0 in the BIG EAST. The Johnnies also won their eighth straight match, tying the program's longest winning streak since 2012.
"An incredibly gutsy and gritty full-team win tonight in front our amazing fans," said Head Coach Joanne Persico. "Mr. Kaiser is smiling down upon his Johnnies this season for sure! I'm so very proud of this group's ability to overcome adversity and great pressure and be their best when their best is needed."
UConn fell to 6-7 overall and 0-2 in BIG EAST play.
Rachele Rastelli notched a match-high 22 kills and 11 digs for her 12th career double-double. The reigning BIG EAST Player of the Year's recorded her fourth 20-kill outing of the season.
Freshman Lucrezia Lodi added a season-high 17 kills and seven digs.
Two other Johnnies finished with double-digit kills, as Giorgia Walther tallied 15 and Eleonora Tosi chipped in 10. Walther also added a career-high six service aces.
Sophomore Wiktoria Kowalczyk, the national leader in assists, tallied 60 assists and a career-high 12 digs for her second double-double of the season. Saturday marked her third match of the season with 60 or more helpers.
Bree Martin led the team with 14 digs.
The first set was a marathon and a nail biter, as the frame ended after 20 ties, 13 lead changes and 70 total points. Neither team led by more than three for the entirety of the stanza. After her team managed to stave off seven set points, Walther broke a 34-34 tie with two consecutive aces to clinch a 36-34 victory for the Red Storm.
In the second set, the Red Storm jumped out to a 6-0 lead thanks to three consecutive aces by Walther, but the Huskies rallied to tie the frame at 10 apiece. With the score even at 17 apiece, the Huskies closed set on an 8-3 burst to take the second set, 25-20, and level the match.
Trailing 7-3 early in the third set, St. John's rallied out of a timeout, eventually taking a 12-11 lead after three straight Rastelli kills. The Red Storm never trailed again in the set on its way to a 25-21 victory. Rastelli hit .308 and led the way with seven kills in the frame. As a team, St. John's hit .282 in the stanza.
Trailing 15-11 midway through the fourth, the Huskies rallied to tie the frame at 17. A series of alternating points ended in favor of the Huskies, 25-23. UConn's Caylee Parker had a set-high nine kills in the stanza. Rastelli added five kills on a .625 hitting percentage.
The decisive fifth set was a thriller. After falling behind early, the Red Storm tied the count at six and never trailed again. A kill by Walther set up match point before a Huskies attack error clinched the 15-12 hard-fought victory for the Red Storm.
St. John's will open the road portion of BIG EAST play when it travels to Villanova next Friday for a 7 p.m. match. The Red Storm will then play a 5 p.m. Saturday evening match at Georgetown.
