NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. – The Stonehill volleyball team continued to see improvement on the hard court as they begin the 2025 season, despite a loss to NJIT, 3-1, on Saturday afternoon.
 
STONEHILL HIGHLIGHTS

• Senior Mia Berardino hit .343 to lead the Skyhawks with 15 kills on 35 attempts and just three errors and was one dig shy of a double-double.
• As a team, the Skyhawks hit .279 from the floor.
• Freshman Cat Deweiler posted a .364 attack percentage with five kills on 11 attempts and one miscue.
• Junior Sammy Franco registered a .312 hitting percentage with seven kills on 16 attempts.

 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Skyhawks came out the gate strong offensively, hitting .333 as a team with 12 kills and just three errors, but the Highlanders were equally as strong from an offensive standpoint. NJIT posting a staggering .545 attack percentage and was able to edge out Stonehill, 25-21 in the first set.
 
The Skyhawks found their backs against the wall, down two sets as the Highlanders grabbed the second set, 25-19. But Stonehill showed incredible resiliency and battled their way back force a fourth set.
 
Trailing by four late in the third set, 18-14, the Skyhawks executed a 4-0 run capped off by an ace by Katelyn Watson to tie the set at 18 and force the Highlanders to call a timeout. The Skyhawks did not look back and swung momentum over to their bench. Senior Mia Berardino came on strong in the final five points tallying two kills while Watson sealed the set win with a kill.
 
Stonehill kept pace with NJIT in a barnburner of a fourth set, but NJIT was able to utilize a 6-2 run to extend their lead to three, 15-12, before the media timeout. Berardino was able to knot up the score at 16 with an ace late, but they were unable to pull ahead as the Highlanders hung on to take the set and the match, 25-21.
 
UP NEXT
Stonehill returns to the court on with the Towson/Morgan State Invitational next weekend, September 5 and 6. They will face both host schools Towson (12 p.m.) and Morgan State (6 p.m.) on September 5.