Aaron Hentges

Box Score

Kennesaw State KSU 20-5, 11-1 ASUN

Stetson STET 13-10, 5-6 ASUN

Kennesaw State KSU

20-5, 11-1 ASUN

Final

Oct. 27, 2018

Stetson STET

13-10, 5-6 ASUN

Set Scores
Team	1	2	3	F
Kennesaw State KSU	20	21	23	(0)
Stetson STET	25	25	25	(3)

Game Recap: Volleyball | October 27, 2018 | Athletic Communications

Hatters Stun Kennesaw State

Stetson Knocks Off Defending ASUN Champs

DeLand, Fla. -- Hao Jin's solo block broke a 23-23 tie and Julie Varga followed with the game-winning kill as Stetson defeated ASUN leader and defending conference champion Kennesaw State in straight sets Saturday night at the Edmunds Center.

The Hatters (13-10, 5-6 ASUN) won by scores of 25-20, 25-21, 25-23 to snap the Owls' 14-game overall win streak and 23-game ASUN win streak.

"We feel very excited and all the work we put into practice showed up on the court," Jin said. "It was a tight game, but we handled the pressure very well."

The Hatters were exceptional down the stretch, battling through 18 ties and nine lead changes in the third set alone. Stetson built a 21-17 lead before Kennesaw rallied to take a 23-22 advantage late in the frame. The Hatters bounced back to capture the final three points, including the go-ahead block by Jin, to bring home one of the signature wins in program history.

"That was a huge confidence builder, period," head coach Yang Deng said. "It doesn't matter how hard a situation is, we have to do what we practice, which is blocking, passing, and defense. That all paid off in the third set."

Making just her fourth start of the year, Riley Nieporte gave the offense a huge lift, collecting a career-high 13 kills while hitting .367.

"Coach talked about two things before the game - playing together and always being relentless," Nieporte said. "Just going for the ball and putting your body out for everything, and that's what we did. We left it all out on the court."

Setter Emily DeStaffino had 30 assists and helped the offense hit .310 overall. Stetson committed just eight errors in 100 attack attempts.

Defensively, Jin totaled six blocks while Brianna Schmid and DeStaffino added three blocks apiece. Eva Deisa (13) and Chelcie Spence (12) each recorded double-digit dig totals.

"I really enjoyed watching them," Deng said. "I am very proud of all of them. Riley and Lele (Hao) did an awesome job."

Kennesaw State (20-5, 11-1 ASUN) had not lost a conference match since Oct. 6 of last season (at Jacksonville). The Owls are ranked 13th in the VolleyballMag Mid-Major poll.

Lauren Chastang led KSU with 12 kills.

The Hatters will complete their homestand at 6 p.m. Tuesday against UNF.

Notes: Chelcie Spence became the first Hatter to reach 400 digs on the season since Alexa Drost in 2014 (429) ... Kennesaw's 14-game win streak was tied for ninth-longest in the NCAA as of Saturday ... Hao Jin surpassed the 200-block mark for her Stetson career ... The Hatters had 10 blocks as a team ... Stetson improved to 6-2 at home.

About Stetson University Athletics: Stetson University's Athletics Program has a vision of developing a culture of champions athletically, academically and within the community. This vision is accomplished through a mission of recruiting and developing student-athletes, coaches and staff, creating a culture of champions, within and outside of competition. The department operates with five core values: Championship Culture, Integrity, Excellence, Pride/Tradition and Leadership. To learn more about the Vision, Mission and Core Values for Stetson Athletics, visit GoHatters.com and click on Mission Statement under the Inside Athletics tab.

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