New York, NY – The Hunter College women's volleyball team kicked off their 2015 campaign this evening against the Violets of NYU in a non-conference matchup. The see-saw affair pushed out to the fifth set to decide the contest that swayed in favor of the visitors, 3-2 (25-17, 26-28, 25-16, 24-26, 15-12). With the loss, the Hawks slip to 0-1 while the Violets move to 1-0.
 
Newcomer Taylor Kerr-Haiduk led the Hawk attack with 17 kills while sophomore Julia Connolly complimented her teammate's efforts with 15 of her own. Angelica Mae Aquino did her part with nine kills and 13 digs, Haley Trunkett chipped in with 22 digs and setter Miranda Hogan earned 38 assists in the loss.
 
"We played a great match," stated Head Coach Val Lang. "A few unforced errors cost us the win but we believe that the team is ready for the challenge ahead. And considering the very competitive schedule ahead of us with such a young team, tonight's experience will definitely set the pace for growth and development. Our squad is connecting well and getting to learn that trust and discipline will make them more efficient and powerful throughout the season."
 
NYU broke away in the first when a kill from Alexis Jackson put the Violets up by seven at 16-9. Three straight NYU points late in the set held the seven-point advantage, but it was a Hunter error that gave the visitors the 25^th point and the 1-0 lead.
 
The Purple and Gold found themselves in a similar situation in the second; down by seven at the 14-7 mark. However, kills by Connolly and Aquino and a handful of NYU errors allowed for an eight-point Hunter run to turn the tables and hold a 15-14 lead. The Hawks found themselves down by four at set point, but rallied once again and went on a 7-2 run to steal the second game by a score of 28-26 and leveling the playing field at 1-1.
 
After dropping the third set by nine, Hunter once again dug deep and went on a five-point run to close out the fourth with a win after being tied up on the ropes and threatened with an NYU set point, setting the stage for the fifth and final set.
 
In an evenly contested finale, a kill by Kerr-Haiduk brought Hunter to within one point of their counterparts, 13-12. However, a service error by the home squad followed by a kill from Rayne Ellis gave the Violets their first win of the season.
 
The Hawks are back in action on Wednesday, September 9 when they host the Ducks of the Stevens Institute of Technology at home at 6pm. Follow along with live stats here.