SPRINGFIELD – The College of Saint Rose chalked up its second consecutive five-set victory by winning the second and third sets before capturing the finale 15-12 to upend host American International 3-2 (16-25, 25-13, 25-21, 20-25, 15-12) in its 2008 Northeast-10 Conference opener tonight.

Sophomore outside hitter Rachel Baxter recorded nine kills, three aces and nine digs; while freshman outside hitter Marilyn Glamack registered a “double-double” behind 12 kills and 14 digs to pace the Golden Knights (6-3/1-0 NE-10). Junior right side hitter Jaclyn Griffin added five kills and a pair of blocks and freshman setter Theresa Staulo handed out 33 assists to go with three aces and a like number of blocks.

For American International (2-6/0-2 NE-10), freshman outside hitter Elisha Terry chalked up a match-high 20 kills and sophomore outside hitter Kambryn Williams added 10 kills and nine digs.

The Golden Knights opened up a 10-4 lead in the final set, but the Yellow Jackets took advantage of five Saint Rose errors to pull within a point at 11-10. The teams then exchanged serves, which left it 13-12 Saint Rose. An ensuing kill by Griffin off a Staulo assist and an American International attack error allowed the Golden Knights to walk off the floor with the victory.

Saint Rose returns to conference action for a pair of matches in two different states in two days this weekend. The Golden Knights will meet Stonehill at 7:00 pm in Easton, MA on Friday, and will then face New Haven on Saturday at 1:00 pm. Meanwhile, American International will meet Post University and host Queens College as part of a tri-match on Saturday in Flushing.

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