The Chargers volleyball team hosted the NCAA East Regional tournament this past weekend and was awarded the number one seed.

On Thursday, the Chargers took on the eighth-seeded Saint Anselm Hawks. The Chargers have seen a lot of Saint Anselm recently, having beat them in a close 3-2 match to close out the regular season, and then suffering a 3-0 sweep to the Hawks in the opening round of the NE-10 conference tournament.

New Haven opened Thursday’s match with an intense first set. After trading points, the Hawks pulled out with a 32-30 win. The second set was mostly dominated by the Chargers, with a 25-19 win. It was a competitive match as both teams continued to go on various streaks of dominance, while neither team was able to take a defining lead.

The third set proved no different as another back and forth battle led to a 25-22 win for the Hawks. Down two  sets to one, the Chargers had to win the next two sets to survive. Led by senior Kristine Rios, the Chargers handled business by winning the fourth set, 25-19, and the fifth set, 15-13. Rios finished the night with a triple-double with 16 kills, 37 assists, and 15 digs.

The Chargers moved on to play the Holy Family Tigers on Friday. Holy Family, the five seed in the tournament, defeated Malloy on Thursday night. The Chargers jumped to a quick lead in the first set, winning 25-10.

The Tigers, though, showed they had fight in them. In the second set, they pulled ahead to an early lead, but New Haven battled back to close the gap. Holy Family was able to hold off the charge by New Haven and won the second set 25-22.

The third set was all Tigers. New Haven pulled ahead to a 6-4 lead in the third but then dropped ten straight points to the Tigers. Trailing 14-6, the Chargers were never able to come back, and lost the third set 25-17.

Leading the Tigers all night was Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference player of the year, senior Chase Wassel. She finished the night with an impressive 24 kills. The Chargers, again facing a 2-1 set deficit for the second night in a row, hoped to keep their season alive, but they were not able to pull it off. The Holy Family Tigers won the fourth set, 25-18, and took the match, 3-1.

Holy Family will compete in their first ever East Region Championship for the CACC where they will take on American International College on Saturday night.

The Chargers season comes to an end finishing off yet another impressive record. New Haven finished the season 26-6 with only one conference loss in the regular season. A few fantastic careers have come to an end for the Chargers. Libero Brianna Mirmina finished her career with the Chargers by leading the team in digs this season with 424. Lindsey Kim also finished her career contributing all season with her serving.

Kristine Rios, who will be leaving the Chargers, has been a key player for all four years for New Haven, winning multiple awards. Rios finished this season with 195 kills, 920 assists, and 357 digs.