To wrap up its run of season-opening tournaments, the Stony Brook women’s volleyball team grabbed a third consecutive weekend win to improve to 7-2.

The Seawolves (7-2) made the trip up the Atlantic coast to Rhode Island for the Art Carmichael Invitational, where they beat the Harvard Crimson (4-2) on Friday in three sets to open the weekend. They stayed hot by taking down the Rhode Island Rams (4-6) in a similar 3-0 fashion later that night but dropped the finale to the Northern Illinois Huskies (2-6) 3-1 on Saturday.

Stony Brook spent much of the first set on Friday trailing, as Harvard orchestrated a 3-0 run to extend its lead to 19-14. A few points later, the Seawolves embarked on a 6-1 run to tie the game. Outside hitter Kali Moore was the linchpin of the run, delivering two kills. After the Crimson put up a point, Stony Brook posted three unanswered points to seal the set. Once again, Moore tallied a kill to help the Seawolves win the first set by a final score of 25-23. 

The next set was knotted at eight before Stony Brook went on a 5-1 spree. Middle blocker Abby Campbell and outside hitter Leoni Kunz each contributed kills. Ahead 15-12, the Seawolves put up a 7-2 run to put the set out of reach. Kunz and Moore tallied consecutive kills to claim the second set.

Stony Brook never trailed in the third set, as it instantly jumped out to a 4-1 advantage with Kunz posting two kills. From there, the Seawolves maintained the lead until the score reached 20-18 when Harvard committed five consecutive errors to hand Stony Brook an easy first-match victory.

Against Rhode Island on Friday night, the Seawolves found themselves in a tie game at seven apiece. Rhode Island middle blocker Havyn Rolle then misfired on her serve to kickstart an 8-2 run for Stony Brook. Middle blocker Ayanna Pierre Louis and Moore each notched kills on the run. 

Set two was much easier for the Seawolves, as they grabbed a 5-1 lead. Stony Brook would put up two more runs of the 4-0 variety to handedly take the set 25-17. 

The Seawolves were put in an unfamiliar spot in the third set, trailing 9-4. Outside hitter Quinn Anderson and Louis killed consecutive points to jumpstart a 10-1 run, which saw Moore tack on a pair of kills. Ahead 17-13, Anderson and Moore gave the Rams two straight points with errors before setter Torri Henry had a bad set. Rhode Island right-side hitter Erika Bracey then spiked one to knot the score once again at 17 apiece. Anderson followed up by making right on her miscue with a go-ahead kill that kicked off a 4-0 run. Kills by Louis, Moore and Campbell then sealed the set and the match, as Stony Brook claimed it 25-21. 

“Playing two matches in one day is really hard and our team came in focused to compete at a high level all day,” head coach Kristin Belzung said in an interview with Stony Brook Athletics. “I thought we did a good job of managing the game plan. I’m excited that we were able to get contributions from a lot of different people.” 

On Saturday, the Seawolves took on Northern Illinois and fell behind early after the Huskies took an 8-3 early advantage. While Moore delivered a pair of kills on a 5-1 run, the comeback proved to be unfruitful, as Northern Illinois held on for a 25-21 victory. 

Stony Brook found itself behind in the second set, as the Huskies held a 12-7 lead. This time, a well-rounded attack spearheaded a 5-0, game-tying run as Moore, Kunz and middle blocker Mercedes Motton notched kills while Henry served a pair of aces. With Northern Illinois now leading by a point, it committed four errors in a five-point span, bookending a kill by Motton to bring the game to set point. Kunz then slammed one down to tie the match at a set apiece.

The Seawolves were unable to capture the momentum in the ensuing set, as the Huskies took a 12-7 lead. From there, they scored seven unanswered points to put the game out of reach. Campbell committed a service error — a common occurrence for Stony Brook — to seal its fate.

With their backs against the wall, the Seawolves were unable to thwart Northern Illinois’ attack, as they quickly fell behind 10-4. Stony Brook mounted a 5-1 run to get themselves back into the game, but the Huskies punched back, pulling away at 21-15. The Seawolves looked to their stars, as Moore, Campbell and Anderson tallied three straight kills as part of a 4-0 run, but the comeback proved to be too little, too late; Northern Illinois claimed the set and match at 25-20. 

“We came out flat today and Northern Illinois is a disciplined and steady team who made us uncomfortable from the start,” Belzung said. “I didn’t think we were able to get enough offensive production to get them out of rhythm throughout the match.”

Stony Brook’s offense struggled with errors, registering a .177 hitting percentage. However, its defense stood strong, holding opponents to just a .135 clip.

Moore led the attack with 37 kills, despite 21 attack errors of her own. She served a pair of aces but also committed five service errors. Anderson had 26 kills on the weekend with 15 errors. 

Kunz helped the effort with 25 kills but also struggled to control her attacks, posting 13 attack errors. 

Louis had a strong weekend in the middle, notching 19 kills and a hitting percentage of .394. Motton had 16 kills and led Stony Brook with seven blocks.

Henry continued to be an important cog in the Seawolves’ offense, assisting 96 points and delivering five service aces. She also led the team in digs, edging out libero Julia Patsos 44 to 43. 

Stony Brook will welcome the Hofstra Pride next weekend for the latest edition of the Battle of Long Island and its home opener at Pritchard Gymnasium. The Pride have gone 4-5 to open the season. The first set on Friday is scheduled for 6:31 p.m.