ALBANY, N.Y. — Jamie Llewellyn’s outstanding performance pushed the Navy volleyball team to a decisive three-set victory over UAlbany on Saturday afternoon at the Capital Center. The win improved Navy’s season record to 2-1, while UAlbany fell to 1-1.
Llewellyn ended the game with a near-double-double, recording 17 kills, a .382 hitting percentage, two aces, and nine digs. Her performance fell just one kill short of tying her career-high, set last year during a five-set match at Bucknell. The match followed Navy’s day-one results, winning against Syracuse but losing to UCF in four sets.
“Navy head coach Paco Labrador praised his team’s performance, stating, “I loved our focus and energy on day two and match three of the opening weekend. UAlbany is a solid team, and they came out strong in set three. We stayed poised and finished extremely strong.”
Dominant Sets
In the first set, despite initial setbacks, the Mids rebounded from a 6-3 deficit to take leads of 13-7 and 18-9. Navy’s defense limited UAlbany to just six kills and a negative .024 hitting percentage. The second set saw Navy dominate from the get-go, establishing an 11-3 lead and extending it to a 23-10 advantage before closing the set. Llewellyn was the star player, accounting for eight of Navy’s 12 kills in the set.
UAlbany showed resilience in the third set, leading at different points, but Navy managed to tie the game at 15-15. After a brief two-point advance by UAlbany, Navy surged to take a 20-17 lead and eventually reached match point with a 24-19 lead. UAlbany could erase two match points before Navy’s Jordan Llewellyn secured the final kill, concluding the 74-minute match.
Stat Highlights
Navy’s overall performance was commendable, with a .270-.020 advantage in hitting percentage over UAlbany. The Mids also led in kills (37-23) and digs (53-37). Their service game was intense, dropping in nine aces while only committing four service errors. On the other hand, UAlbany managed to secure only four aces and made seven errors.
Apart from Jamie Llewellyn, other players also contributed notably. Jordan Llewellyn posted eight kills and 12 digs, while Hannah Hoover snared 11 digs. Middle hitter Anna Klemeyer continued her strong performance from the season’s opening weekend, recording six kills without attack errors.
“We looked more like ourselves from the service line today,” Labrador noted, adding, “That is a team goal, and I liked seeing six different players with aces.”
Upcoming Games
Navy is gearing up to host Maryland, Utah Valley, and Old Dominion in the 12th playing of the Kristen Dickmann Invitational, scheduled for Sept. 1-3.