Rhode Island Starters
Ma. Disu, Me. Disu, McCarles, Abuto, Rolle, Vente, Henry (L)

Saint Louis Starters
Gokcen, Brus, Lynn, Rice, Luckett, Jansen, Rodgers (L)

How it Happened
Rhode Island (8-16, 3-8 Atlantic 10) won two of the first three sets but was not able to close things out as Saint Louis (9-14, 4-7 A-10) rallied to pull out the 3-2 (25-15, 20-25, 24-26, 25-23, 15-7) Friday night. The Billikens earned the weekend split and prevented Rhody from beating SLU twice in the same season for what would have been the first time in program history.

Set One – Saint Louis 25, Rhode Island 15
It was all Saint Louis in the opening set, as the visitors limited Rhody to a negative attack percentage. Rhody had nine kills with 10 attack errors as Saint Louis recorded seven blocks in the opener. URI hit -.031, while Saint Louis logged 11 kills with just five errors to cruise to the early lead.

Set Two – Rhode Island 25, Saint Louis 20
Holding a slight 16-14 lead in the second set, Rhode Island put together a 5-0 run behind the right arm of Emma Vente. Vente delivered three kills and Havyn Rolle added one of her own to give URI a commanding 21-14 lead. Saint Louis did not fold, using a 5-1 run to pull back within three points at 22-19. A SLU service error, a Rolle kill and an attack error by the Billikens helped URI secure the set and even the match.

Set Three – Rhode Island 26, Saint Louis 24
After the teams split the first eight points of the set, Rhode Island ran off five straight points behind Chloe Abuto's play at the net. She had two kills and also combined with Madi Disu on a block to help the Rams build a 9-4 lead and force a Saint Louis timeout. Out of the break, Abuto and Megan Disu combined on a block to keep the momentum going. The lead disappeared after a 6-1 Saint Louis run tied the set at 13-13, leading to a URI timeout. From there, it was truly a back-and-forth affair, as the teams were tied at 14-14, 15-15, 17-17, 18-18 and 20-20. However, Saint Louis got a slight lead at 22-20 after a Delaney Rice kill and a URI attack error. Another Rice kill made it 23-20, as SLU had all the momentum. A long rally ended in a Rice attack error, and an Abuto kill pulled Rhody within one at 23-22. A Megan Disu killed tied the set again, and a SLU attack error gave Rhody a set point, until a Rice killed made it 24-24. An Abuto kill gave Rhody another set point, and a block by Havyn Rolle and Emma Vente gave Rhode Island the key third set.

Set Four – Saint Louis 25, Rhode Island 23
Saint Louis led for most of the set, moving ahead by as many as seven points. However, Rhode Island charged back as a Havyn Rolle block capped a 4-0 run that tied the set 17-17. Saint Louis got a kill followed by a block out of the timeout to retake a two-point lead. Rolle delivered a kill, but another SLU kill made it 20-18. Rhody got within one after an attack error, and an Aerin Bowman kill knotted the score at 20-20. SLU moved in front after a service error, but another Bowman kill tied it at 21-21. Madi Disu put the Rams in front for the first time in the set with a kill, but another Rhody service error tied it at 22-22. Saint Louis scored on a ball-handling error, but then gave the point back with a service error, tying the score 23-23. Saint Louis closed it with back-to-back kills to set up a deciding fifth set.

Set Five – Saint Louis 15, Rhode Island 7
Leading 6-4, Saint Louis used a 6-1 run to build a commanding 12-5 lead in the final set. Irmak Gokcen sandwiched a pair of kills around a Carlie Rodgers ace to start the run. Rhody was never able to recover, and the Billikens clinched the win with kills from Kayla Jansen and Addy Brus.

Inside the Box Score

• Rhode Island entered the match leading the Atlantic 10 in blocks, but had just three combined in the first two sets. The Rams recovered to record seven in the third set.
• Saint Louis finished the match with a 18-13 edge in total blocks.
• The teams combined for 154 digs. Rhody had 68 while the Billikens had 66.
• Freshman Dakota Henry had a team-high 19 digs, while senior Edie Lamoreaux added 12.
• Sophomore Chloe Abuto, redshirt junior Emma Vente and freshman Havyn Rolle all had nine kills.
• Abuto added seven blocks, while Vente and Rolle both had four.
• Senior setter Katie Butler just missed a double-double, recording 23 assists with nine digs.

Up Next
Rhode Island visits Fordham for a single match on Tuesday, Oct. 29. The match begins at 5 p.m.