St. John’s Sweeps Through Day One of the Jack Kaiser Volleyball Classic

Friday, September 20

Queens, N.Y. (Carnesecca Arena)

10 a.m.

St. John's University

9-3,0-0Big East

Iona

1-9,0-0MAAC

Iona

St. John's (NY)

Magda Stambrowska registered seven kills and four blocks.

St. John’s Sweeps Through Day One of the Jack Kaiser Volleyball Classic

9/20/2024 9:39:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2 St. John's vs Iona Box Score (PDF)St. John's vs LIU Box Score (PDF)Highlights (Iona)Highlights (LIU)

Erin Jones notched her fifth double-double of the season against LIU

QUEENS, N.Y. (Sept. 20, 2024) – The St. John's volleyball team swept through the first day of the Jack Kaiser Volleyball Classic, taking down Iona and LIU in straight-sets, 3-0, on Friday in Carnesecca Arena.

Match 1 - St. John's 3, Iona 0

St. John's dominated the match from the first frame and never looked back, winning the sets 25-11, 25-8 and 25-20.

Erin Jones paced the match with 14 kills at a whopping 65 percent hitting clip with eight digs, two blocks, two aces and two assists.

Lucrezia Lodi registered 12 kills, four digs and two aces. Giorgia Walther added 11 slams, three digs, three aces and a block against the Gaels.

Rashanny Solano Smith led the match with 21 digs at seven per set while Wiktoria Kowalczyk produced 37 helpers and seven digs.

Ludovica Zola and Magda Stambrowska each logged three rejections apiece in the contest.

As a team, the Red Storm out-blocked the Gaels seven-to-three and held them to a -5.1 hitting rate.

The first set opened to a back-and-forth affair, leading to a 6-6 tie. St. John's went on a 15-4 run that was engineered by eight kills between Lodi, Jones and Walther to take a 21-10 lead. The Red Storm cruised through the end of the frame with a 5-0 spurt, winning it, 25-11. Lodi pounded a set-high seven kills on 54.5 percent hitting in the opening game.

The Johnnies raced out to an 11-0 lead in the second stanza behind a combination of kills and aces from Jones, Lodi, Walther and Zola, forcing the Gaels to burn both of their timeouts. Iona went on a 4-1 stretch to trail, 12-4, but St. John's continued its offensive onslaught, sparked by two Jones' aces, growing its advantage to 19-5. The Red Storm dominated the end of the frame, taking the second round, 25-8. The Johnnies hit at a whopping 45.5 percent in the second set.

The third frame started with a 7-7 tie before St. John's found its groove with a 6-3 scoring period to lead by three, 13-10. The Johnnies kept its lead until Iona scored three consecutive points, tying the stanza at 16. Even at 20, the Red Storm found its rhythm, putting down five straight points capped off by a Jones and Zola block assist to take the third game and the match, 25-20. Jones led the final set with six kills at an 85.7 hitting percentage.

Match 2 - St. John's 3, LIU 0

The Red Storm finished off the first day of the Jack Kaiser Classic with a straight-set sweep over LIU. The scores of the sets were 25-20, 25-23 and 25-18

Jones led the match with 17 kills at a 43.3 hitting percentage and 12 digs for her fifth double-double of the season. The junior also recorded three assists and two aces. The standout currently leads St. John's with 226 points and 190 kills.

Kowalczyk notched her second double-double of the season on a match-best 40 helpers and 10 digs. The standout also tacked on two blocks and an ace.

Stambrowska logged nine kills on an efficient 50 percent clip with two blocks and two digs. Walther added six kills to the Johnnies' total paired with two block assists. Zola totaled five kills, three digs and two blocks.

In her first start at libero this season for the Red Storm, Bree Martin tallied nine digs.

Kya Harris secured the first two aces of her career against LIU, to go along with two kills and a dig.

With the win, St. John's now boasts a 10-3 record and a perfect 7-0 mark inside Carnesecca Arena.

The opening set, which featured 11 ties and five lead changes, started with a battle to a 15-14 LIU edge. A Walther kill kicked off a 7-2 stretch for St. John's, giving it a 21-17 advantage and forced two LIU timeouts. The Sharks threatened with a 3-1 spurt, but the Red Storm kept its composure, en route to a 25-20 victory in the opening frame. Jones paced the stanza with six kills at a 45.5 percent clip.

The second frame kicked off to a 5-3 LIU advantage, but a 7-1 run ignited by a Jones' kill and ace gave the Johnnies a 10-6 lead. The Sharks punched back with four consecutive points to knot the set at 10. Even at 12, the Red Storm registered a 5-1 stretch that featured four Jones' kills, taking a 17-13 lead. LIU proceeded to go on an 8-2 rally to take a two-point, 21-19, advantage, but St. John's retied the frame, 21-21, on back-to-back slams from Stambrowska and Walther. The Johnnies went on a decisive 3-1 spurt, capped off by a Shark service error to win the second game, 25-23. Jones logged another seven kills in the second set.

Kowalczyk served the Red Storm to a 5-0 opening lead in the third frame. LIU proceeded to put together a 7-3 stretch, cutting the St. John's lead down to one, 8-7. The Johnnies grew their advantage back to seven, 15-8, off a 7-1 run that had five slams between Stambrowska and Walther. The Sharks rallied for a 6-1 scoring period to trail, 16-14, but the Red Storm buried LIU with a decisive 9-4 run that was fueled by two Harris aces to take the final set and the match, 25-18.

St. John's will close out the 10th annual Jack Kaiser Volleyball Classic tomorrow afternoon at 2 p.m. when it squares off against Bryant.