EAGLES LET ONE SLIP AWAY

CSE gave their fans an amazing match on Saturday against College of New Rochelle but came up 2 points short of a victory.  The Eagles got off to a slow start in set #1 but won key, crucial points, coming from 6 points down early, to win 25-23.  Set #2 was a far different set, mainly because the CSE offense remained unproductive and the team couldn't overcome that deficiency with its serving in this set.  The Eagles fell 25-17.  In set #3,  the Eagles' offense had its best production of the year, clicking for 10 kills behind an outstanding performance by freshman  Kareemah Muhammad.  That burst of offensive production was enough to derail College of New Rochelle 25-17 in the set.  The Eagles were 1 set away from their first victory of the year and seemed ready to take that opportunity.

Set #4 saw the Eagles have a similar start to the first set and the team this time could not rebound as they had in set #1.  College of New Rochelle build up a 15-7 lead and never looked back.  Set #4 went to CNR 25-17.

CNR must've thought that the 5th set was theirs after the first 6 points in the 5th set.  CNR led 5-1 and the Eagles' offense looked as anemic as ever.  However, the serving of Co-Captains Carmela Sellitto and Chanice Sears brought the Eagles back and the team held the lead 8-7 at the halfway point of set #5.  The Eagles could not sustain momentum though as key hitting errors hurt their cause.  CSE trailed 14-11 late but the Eagles' defense held tough and with CNR still up 14-13 late in the match, the Eagles looked like they had tied it at 14-14.  However, after a discussion with a linesperson, the head referee overturned the earlier decision and the Eagles fell 15-13.

The Eagle disappointment was palpable but the team had many breakthrough performances.  Kareemah Muhammed had the first double digit kill total for the season (10K).  Carmela Sellitto and Chanice Sears were stellar from the service line, hitting for 10 aces and led the defensive efforts of the Eagles by totaling 27 digs.  As a team,  the Eagles seemed to find their offense over the last 3 sets.  The Eagles hit for 23 K to only 11 Errors.  That effectiveness in the best of any 3 set total by the Eagles during this season.  The Eagles will try to better their fortune on Wednesday night at home versus Cedar Crest College.