EASTON, Mass. (Sept. 26, 2015) - Junior middle hitter Taryn McCullouch (Buena Park, Calif.) put down four of her team-high-tying 10 kills during a decisive 8-0 run in the fifth set Saturday afternoon at Merkert Gymnasium, as the LIU Post volleyball team moved its season-best winning streak to five-consecutive matches with a 3-2 (25-20, 22-25, 25-22, 12-25, 15-10) triumph at Stonehill College.
The visiting Pioneers (10-3) twice held one-set leads, only to see the match knotted up by the Skyhawks (6-6) – including at 2-2 with a 25-12 edge in the fourth game. That set the stage for the fifth and decisive set, where McCullouch (10-3-19, .368; 2 ba) slammed two kills with the frame tied at 4-all to give LIU Post the lead for good. The Pioneers continued to push points through a pair of Stonehill timeouts, with McCullouch's fifth of her six kills in the set giving her side a 12-4 margin.
The Skyhawks responded with three-consecutive points of their own, before a Katherine DeLanty (Smithtown, N.Y.) ace cut the deficit to 14-10. However, a service error on the next play assured head coach Shellane Ogoshi's team the victory.
LIU Post never trailed in the opening set, while Stonehill used four-consecutive markers at the end of set No. 2 to even the match at 1-1. A pair of 6-0 spurts in the third set pushed the Pioneers back in front in the match 2-1, before the Skyhawks ran away with a 13-point margin in the fourth set.
Sophomore outside/middle/right-side hitter Danielle Valenza (Hauppauge, N.Y.) registered a double-double with 13 digs and a team-high-tying 10 kills, while senior libero Rachel Ringor (Honolulu, Hawaii) paced LIU Post's defensive passing with a match-high-tying 21 digs. McCullouch, Valenza and senior middle hitter Melissa Hansen (Colorado Springs, Colo.) each set two assisted blocks at the Pioneers' net, while freshman setter Giulia Genna (Civitella San Paolo, Italy) notched 34 assists, eight digs and six kills.
LIU Post returns home to the Pratt Recreation Center Tuesday night (Sept. 29), when it plays host to the University of Bridgeport in a 7 p.m., East Coast Conference match-up.