St. John’s Falls to Villanova in Four Sets

Saturday, October 21

Villanova, Pa. (Jake Nevin Field House)

5 p.m.

St. John's University

16-6,8-2Big East

Villanova

14-8,5-5Big East

St. John's (NY)

Villanova

10/21/2023 8:41:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

Three Johnnies tallied double-digit kills

VILLANOVA, Pa. – The St. John's volleyball team fell to Villanova in four sets, 3-1, at Jake Nevin Field House on Saturday evening.

After winning the first set, the Red Storm dropped its last three. The scores of the sets were 26-24, 22-25, 22-25 and 20-25.

Three Johnnies earned double-digit kills. Giorgia Walther paced St. John's (16-6, 8-2 BIG EAST) in kills with 13 paired with four digs. Lucrezia Lodi added 12 kills and five digs while Erin Jones tacked on 10 slams, seven assists, seven digs and four block assists.

Eleonora Tosi contributed nine kills on a season-high 57.1 percent clip to go along with three block assists.

Wiktoria Kowalczyk led St. John's in helpers yet again, netting 37 to go along with five digs, three aces and a kill.

Rashanny Solano Smith returned as the Red Storm's libero, accumulating 18 digs, three assists and two aces. Bree Martin contributed nine digs.

Magda Stambrowska put up a team-high five total blocks for St. John's.

Villanova's Abby Harrell recorded a match-high 17 kills, eight digs and four block assists. Andrea Campos notched 49 assists while Taryn Whittingham tallied 19 digs for the Wildcats (14-8, 5-5 BIG EAST). As a team, Villanova out-blocked St. John's 12-8.

Kowalczyk paced the Johnnies in the opening frame, contributing 11 assists and three aces. The squads opened the match by battling to a 5-5 tie before the Wildcats scored three straight points to take an 8-5 lead, forcing a St. John's timeout. The Johnnies crept back into the match, evening things out at 13-all off an 8-5 stretch. Tied up at 18, the Red Storm scored three unanswered points to take a 21-18 lead, but the Wildcats were able to retie the frame at 21-all. Villanova and St. John's battled to a Wildcat set point, 24-23, but the Johnnies scored three straight points off two Walther kills and a Jones ace to retire the first stanza, 26-24.

Jones recorded five kills, three assists and two digs in the second game for the Johnnies. Villanova jumped out to a 5-1 lead to kick off the second frame which forced a Red Storm timeout. Villanova grew its lead to 9-3, but the Johnnies were able to cut their deficit down to two, 14-12, off a 9-5 run. Both programs exchanged points midway through the set, keeping the Wildcat lead within two, until Villanova set point, 24-21. The Johnnies applied pressure with a Jones kill, but a Wildcat slam closed out the second game, 25-22, in Villanova's favor.

Lodi and Walther each tacked on four kills in the third game. Just like the previous sets, the Wildcats ran out to an initial an 9-5 advantage over the Red Storm at the start of the third stanza. Villanova continued to pour on the points, growing its lead to seven, 17-10, off a 7-1 stretch. The Johnnies chipped away at the Wildcat lead, using an 8-4 run which included slams from Jones, Tosi and Lodi to only trail by three, 21-18. St. John's and Villanova exchanged points which cut the Wildcat lead down to one, 23-22. Villanova went on to score back-to-back points at the end of the set off a kill and a block to close out the third game, 25-22 and take a 2-1 lead in the match.

The Johnnies opened set four on fire, running out to a 5-2 lead that featured back-to-back Stambrowska kills. The Wildcats answered right back, scoring five unanswered points, to take a slim two-point, 7-5 lead. St. John's and Villanova went point for point with each other in the middle of the frame until Villanova put together a 5-1 run to take a 19-13 lead. The Wildcats pushed their lead to 21-14, but the Johnnies brought themselves back into the set with a 5-1 run to only trail by three, 22-19. A final 3-1 stretch would close out the match for Villanova, taking the fourth and final set, 25-20.

St. John's will return home next Friday, Oct. 27 when it welcomes Xavier to Carnesecca Arena. First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m.