WORCESTER, Mass. – The Holy Cross volleyball outsider hitter tandem of sophomore Rachel Johnson and junior Abbie Lane produced massive performances as the Crusaders picked up a 3-1 victory against Patriot League foe Lehigh Friday evening in Coach George Blaney '61 Gymnasium.

The win was the fourth of the season for Holy Cross and first in league play. The Crusaders passed their 2022 win total with the win. The Mountain Hawks move to 11-10, 3-7 PL with the setback.

Johnson had a match-best 14 kills to go with 15 digs in the double-double effort, her fourth of the campaign and sixth of her career. Lane chipped in 13 kills with four digs including the game-winning point during Deaf* Awareness Night, a cause she is extremely passionate about.  

SET SCORES:

• Crusaders 3, Mountain Hawks 1 (25-23, 25-22, 20-25, 25-23)

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Lehigh led 12-9 in the opening stages of the first set. They built their advantage to 14-10 before the media timeout. A 6-2 Crusaders outburst concluded with a Lane kill to level the margin at 16-16. Lehigh regained the edge briefly before the set was knotted up at 22 all. Holy Cross collected the final three points getting a junior Rian Millership kill for the 25-23 win.
• The squads swapped points in the second set building no lead more than two points early. Tied 16-16, junior Lauren Halverson bashed an attack attempt opening up a 19-17 Holy Cross lead. Lehigh came within one, 22-21, however back-to-back kills by Johnson and senior setter Halle Carter put the Crusaders on the brink of a 2-0 lead, 24-21. A Lehigh attack error wrapped up the 25-22 win.
• In the third set, Lehigh took a 5-0 early lead resulting in a Crusaders timeout. A dual block on the right pin from Millership and Halverson made it 5-1. Back-to-back Lane kills brought the hosts within one at 8-7. Lehigh built a four point edge, but the Crusaders stayed within a few serves when sophomore setter Katie Russell skipped the set and got a kill making it 19-18 Lehigh. Ahead by two, Lehigh closed out the third set 25-20.
• The fourth set saw three lead changes. Holy Cross was behind 8-6 then used a 9-3 scoring run as freshman libero Haley Gill placed an ace to push the home team in the lead 15-11 at the media timeout. Johnson smoked an attack attempt on the left side to increase the margin to 18-13. Lehigh battled back to come within one following an attack error. Halverson and Lane got a kill to clinch the match.

INSIDE THE BOX:

• The Crusaders are 2-0 in Deaf* Awareness Games.
• Holy Cross' setters, Carter (26) and Russell (15) had 15+ assists each.
• Freshman Emma Halstead recorded double-digit digs (12) for the second time this season.
• Johnson reached the 200 kill plateau for the first time in her career. She has 391 total kills.
• Millerships' six kills were the second most during a match this season.
• The Crusaders hit. 467 in the second set and had 16 kills.

POSTGAME THOUGHTS:

Hear from @PeytenAbigail following the 'Sader win!#GoCrossGo pic.twitter.com/dh9UwWxcXa

— Holy Cross Volleyball (@HCrossVB) October 21, 2023

UP NEXT:

• Holy Cross concludes their home weekend on Saturday, Oct. 21 against Lafayette.
• First serve is scheduled for 4 p.m.

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