BROOKVILLE, N.Y. (Nov. 8, 2014) - Freshman outside hitter/middle blocker Danielle Valenza (Hauppauge, N.Y.) provided 13 kills off the bench Saturday to lift the LIU Post volleyball team to a 3-1 win against East Coast Conference foe Daemen at the Pratt Recreation Center.

Holding a slight 5-3 edge in the first set, the Pioneers (17-12, 10-5 ECC) rolled off a 9-2 run to widen their lead to 14-5. Valenza and junior middle hitter Melissa Hansen (Colorado Springs, Colo.) notched two kills apiece in the burst. Senior middle blocker Heather Adams (Centerville, Ohio) and freshman middle blocker Heather Ball (Gilbert, Ariz.) each added a service ace. 

The green and gold eventually built as much as a 10-point cushion (24-14) in the game, on the back of an Analise Austin (Honolulu, Hawaii) kill, and cruised to the 25-15 victory.

The second set featured more of the same from the hosts. Tied at 5-all, LIU Post went on an 8-1 spurt to grab a 13-6 advantage, which it never relinquished. Austin collected three aces in that stretch, forcing a Daemen (2-26, 2-13 ECC) timeout. Valenza bookended the streak with kills.

Much like the first game, the Pioneers eventually opened up a double-digit lead (24-12), and took the set by a 25-13 final.

The Wildcats fought back, however, and won the third set (25-15), before the green and gold wrapped up the game in the fourth. In a game that featured 10 tied scores and five lead changes, the two squads were all even at 13-13, until LIU Post scored eight of the next nine points to go in front for good. Valenza was again the key catalyst in the run, slamming down four kills. Ball contributed one of her three aces on the afternoon.

Soon after, the Pioneers locked up the set (25-19) and the match (3-1) on a Hansen kill, off a pass from senior setter Lulu Centro (Rome, Italy).

In addition to her 13 kills, Valenza, who boasted an impressive .435 hitting percentage, tallied six digs. Hansen compiled nine kills and two block assists. Ball totaled eight kills, five blocks and four digs. Austin accumulated six kills, five digs and three aces. Adams and junior setter/outside hitter Monica Amador (Cedar Park, Texas) both registered five kills. Adams also rejected five blocks, while Amador allocated 17 assists. Centro dished out a team-high 20 helpers. Junior libero Rachel Ringor (Honolulu, Hawaii) had a match-best 21 digs.

Head Coach Shellane Ogoshi and her LIU Post team finish up the 2014 regular season Sunday (Nov. 9), when they host Roberts Wesleyan in an ECC tilt at the Pratt Recreation Center at noon.