Box Score WALTHAM, Mass. – Southern Connecticut State University volleyball lost to Bentley, 3-1, in the Northeast-10 Conference Championship Semifinals in Waltham, Mass. The Owls lost the first set, 27-25, before storming back to take the second set, 25-22. Bentley clinched the match with wins of 25-20 and 25-20. The Owls dropped to 16-8 overall while Bentley improved to 23-4.
The Owls received a career-night from Katie Bardak who had a personal-best 14 kills while also hitting .355. Ceci Carter had double-double with a season-best 11 kills to go with 11 digs while Sarah Stark also had 10 kills. 2025 NE10 Rookie of the Year Kimi Mitchell had six kills, 39 assists and nine digs while Sarah Henault had a game-high 25 digs.

Both teams traded points to a 5-5 tie before Bentley used an 8-3 run to take a 13-8 lead. After a timeout, the Owls stormed back, answering with a 10-5 run to tie the set at 18-18. Trailing 22-21, the Owls answered with three-straight points before a service error gave Southern a 24-23 lead. A receiving error tied it at 24-24 before before teams traded points to make it 25-25. Bentley rallied to score the final two points of the set to win, 27-25. Mitchell had four kills and eight assists while Sarah Stark and Katie Bardak had three kills each in the first frame.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     
In the second set, Bardak and Kerrigan Habing scored the first two points of the set before Bentley jumped out to an 11-7 lead and then pushed its edge to 18-12. Bardak and Habing both continue to contribute for the Owls as they both totaled four kills in the set, while Ceci Carter had three, including a pair as Southern cut the lead to 20-17. Emily Sartell then entered the game and pinned back-to-back aces on the Falcons to pull Southern within  a points, 20-19, before a Stark kill tied the set, 20-20. Southern was then called for an attack error that would have made it 22-22, but a challenge of a touch at the net gave Bardak the kill and then a block to give the Owls a 24-21 lead. The Owls held off a lengthy rally to win the second set, 25-22. Mitchell had 11 assists in the set while Bardak had five kills.

The Owls opened the third set with a 4-1 lead before Bentley went on an 11-2 run to take a 12-6 lead. With the Owls trailing 13-10, Carter picked up a kill before Stark had back-to-back ills to tie it at 13-13. Bentley rattled off three-straight points before Bardak and Sydney Bennett had back-to-back kills to ge the Owls within a point, 16-15. With Bentley leading 20-17, the Owls sent an attack out of bounds, but a Bentley player was whistled for being under the net to give the Owls the point and the serve. The Owls clawed back to within a point, 20-19, before Bentley closed it out on a 5-2 run. Carter led the way for the Owls with five kills while Bardak and Stark had three kills, each.

The fourth set was a tight battle as the first three-point lead didn't come until Bentley took a 17-14 advantage. Bentley managed to close out the match with a 8-5 run.

Despite the loss, Southern Connecticut's postseason is still alive. Currently ranked sixth in the most recent East region poll, the Owls will learn of their potential NCAA tournament selection during the 2025 NCAA Division II Women's Volleyball Tournament selection show on Monday, Nov. 24 at 7:30 p.m.