Army Volleyball Falls in Five Sets Against Hofstra

HEMPSTEAD – Army West Point volleyball (6-3) battled through five sets against Hofstra (5-3) on Saturday, but the Black Knights fell 2-3 at the David S. Mack Physical Education Center.

Army took the first two sets, 25-18 and 25-23, before Hofstra rallied to win the final three 25-23, 25-18 and 15-11.

Corrine Blackburn highlighted the Black Knights’ effort with a career-high 14 kills, hitting .440 on 25 attacks with just three errors.

Blackburn also added three block assists and finished with a team-high 15.5 points.

Army and Hofstra traded points throughout the opening set before the Black Knights began to create separation. Blackburn delivered four kills in the frame, helping Army move ahead 17-15 before Ryan Leclair added a service ace for an 18-15 advantage.

Hofstra cut the margin to 20-18, but Army closed the set with five straight points. Kealakai Bandy recorded a kill, Blackburn and Kennedy Jones combined for a block, and the Black Knights finished off a 25-18 opening-set win.

Hofstra opened the second set with four consecutive points, but Army answered with a 5-0 run behind kills from Jones and Michelle Parker and a Naomi Chinchar service ace.

The teams traded momentum through the middle of the frame before Army erased a late 20-18 deficit. Blackburn tied the set at 18 earlier in the stretch and later combined with Bandy for a block that gave the Black Knights a 21-20 lead.

With the score tied at 23, an Army challenge reversed the next point before Bandy’s kill and a Hofstra attack error secured the 25-23 victory and a 2-0 match lead. Blackburn was a perfect 3-for-3 offensively in the set.

Army carried the momentum into the third, building a 13-8 advantage behind a block from Blackburn and Janie Deapen, a Juliette Myrick service ace and back-to-back Blackburn kills. The Black Knights later led 20-15 before Hofstra began to rally.

The Pride pulled even at 23 and scored the final two points to take the set, 25-23, and extend the match.

Hofstra jumped out to an early lead in the fourth, but Army responded with kills from Parker, Bandy and Marlee Lightsey to briefly move in front, 8-7.

The Pride regained control through the middle of the set and built a 15-12 advantage. Blackburn added multiple kills down the stretch, including points at 20-16 and 22-18, but Hofstra closed out the frame, 25-18, to force a fifth set.

The deciding set remained tight early before Hofstra built a 12-9 advantage. Lightsey provided Army’s biggest spark with four kills on five attacks, while Blackburn added another kill.

The Black Knights pulled within two at 12-10 and 13-11, but Hofstra scored the final two points to take the fifth set, 15-11, and complete the comeback.