ALBANY – Visiting Stonehill College rallied from a 2-0 deficit to snap a three-match skid and upend The College of Saint Rose women's volleyball team 3-2 (25-21, 28-26, 17-25, 20-25, 10-15) in a Northeast-10 Conference contest this afternoon at the Daniel P. Nolan Gymnasium.

Not only did it mark the final regular season match of the 2009 slate for the Golden Knights (15-14/5-10), but senior libero Mary German and senior right side hitter Jaclyn Griffin had their standout careers come to an end. The team co-captains were honored prior to today's match as part of the College's “Senior Day” celebration.

German, as she has done throughout her career, spearheaded the defensive effort behind a match-high 30 digs. It also pushed her school record total to 2,154, thus placing herself as the all-time leader in career digs and the lone Saint Rose player to amass 2,000 digs. Meanwhile, Griffin collected eight kills and hit .286 with a mere two errors in 21 swings. Her 788 career kills place her among the top-10 in school annals.

Additionally, junior middle hitter Kelly Ryan wound up with 11 kills and six blocks, while sophomore outside hitter Sarah Kahrs finished with 13 digs, nine kills and three aces.

The Skyhawks (15-10/9-5 NE-10) received a match-high 18 kills from junior right side hitter Erin Johnson. Johnson also contributed five digs and five aces, while junior middle blocker Laura Noonan added 16 kills and hit .387.

After taking the first set 25-21, it appeared the Golden Knights were in control following a dramatic 28-26 second set victory. Sophomore middle hitter Chelsea Tyler broke a 26-26 tie with a kill and then Saint Rose took advantage of a Stonehill miscue to close things out.

The Skyhawks proved their mettle by racing out to an 8-0 lead in the third set and never looked back. The fourth set was a see-saw battle early, but again Stonehill proved to be too much by hitting .270 and limiting the Golden Knights to eight kills en route to a 25-20 triumph.

The fifth and deciding set was knotted at 5-5 when Noonan converted a feed from junior setter Andrea Wirth to ignite a 5-1 run that put the Skyhawks in front to stay. 

Looking ahead, Saint Rose is expected to return 11 letterwinners from its roster of 13 heading into 2010. Meanwhile, Stonehill will wrap up its regular season schedule tomorrow when the Skyhawks head to Le Moyne College for a 12:00 pm league match in Syracuse. 

Box Score

Senior Day Photos