Rhode Island Starters
Ma. Disu, Houchens, McCarles, Abuto, Rolle, Bowman, Lamoreaux (L), Henry (L)
Fordham Starters
Moody, Colvin, Kuyn, Ozaslan, Woodruff, Holderied, Fernandez (L)

How it Happened
A dominant showing led Rhode Island to its first conference win of the season, as Rhody swept Fordham 25-20, 25-17, 25-20 Wednesday evening. URI (6-12, 1-4 Atlantic 10) limited Fordham to a .110 attack percentage, recording 15 blocks in just three sets as it snapped a six-match losing streak with the victory.

Set One – Rhode Island 25, Fordham 20
Playing well in all areas, Rhode Island hit .273 offensively and limited Fordham to .070 while blocking five attacks. URI never trailed in the opening set, using a 4-0 run to create separation midway through the frame. Holding a 16-15 lead, URI got two Madi Disu kills sandwiched around an Erika Bracey kill. A Sydney Houchens ace made the score 20-15, forcing Fordham to call time out. Out of the break, Havyn Rolle and Bracey combined on a block to extend the lead to six. The lead was never truly threatened, and a block by Disu and Chloe Abuto set up seven set points at 24-17. Fordham managed a mini 3-0 run, but Rhody closed out the set with Aerin Bowman's fourth kill of the set.

Set Two – Rhode Island 25, Fordham 17
It was all Rhody from the start of the second set. URI opened with a 6-1 run that featured two Aerin Bowman kills, a solo block and kill by Havyn Rolle and an ace from Dakota Henry. Fordham managed to chip away and get within 9-7, but a 6-0 run sparked by a pair of Kiera McCarles aces pushed the lead to 15-7. A 3-0 Fordham run trimmed the lead to 15-10, but a service error stopped the momentum and made it 16-10. Rhody never let up from there, eventually ending the second set with a block by Bowman and Abuto.

Set Three – Rhode Island 25, Fordham 20
The defense made sure Rhody ended things quicky. A solo block by Sydney Houchens followed by a block from Chloe Abuto and Aerin Bowman helped turn a 12-12 score into a 15-12, Rhode Island lead. After Fordham cut the lead to two points, URI responded with a 5-0 run that ended with back-to-back Havyn Rolle kills, making the score 20-13. While the lead was never truly in doubt, Fordham squeezed within 23-20, but Rolle removed all doubt with her sixth kill of the set and secured the match with a service ace.

Inside the Box Score

• The sweep was Rhode Island's first in 25 matches, dating back to a 3-0 win at Duquesne Oct. 21, 2023.
• Rhode Island snapped an overall 11-match losing streak in Atlantic 10 play, dating back to last season.
• Fordham's .110 attack percentage was the lowest by a Rhode Island opponent this season.
• The 15 blocks for Rhode Island was the seventh time this season with 10 or more for the team.
• Havyn Rolle led Rhode Island with 11 kills, hitting .500 as she had just two errors in 18 attempts.
• She also had seven blocks, including two solo efforts, and four digs.
• Madi Disu had nine kills, eight digs and a pair of block assists.
• Aerin Bowman logged eight kills, six block assists and two digs.
• Chloe Abuto recorded six kills with zero attack errors to go with seven block assists.
• Edie Lamoreaux led the team with 12 digs.
• Setters Kiera McCarles and Catalina Hendricks combined for 32 assists and 11 digs.
• The passing of McCarles (18 assists, 7 digs) and Hendricks (14 assists, 4 digs) helped Rhody hit a season-best .294 as a team.

Up Next
Rhode Island hosts Duquesne for a pair of matches this weekend. The teams play Saturday night at 7 p.m. and again Sunday at 1 p.m. The Sunday match will stream on ESPN+.