Stillwell Posts 32 Kills, Volleyball Comes Back to Top Columbia, 3-2

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Freshman Sabrina Stillwell recorded 32 kills – the second most in a single match in school history – to propel Brown University volleyball to a come-from-behind win over Columbia University, 3-2 (24-26, 20-25, 26-24, 25-20, 15-8) on Saturday night at the Pizzitola Sports Center.

Stillwell (Laguna Beach, Calif.) finished just two kills shy of Brown's program record as Maddie Lord '15 recorded 34 kills for the Bears last season at Penn on Oct. 11, 2014. Stillwell becomes the fourth Brown student-athlete to register 30 or more kills in a match.

The Bears (8-6, 2-1 Ivy) stood on the brink in set three, trailing 2-0 in sets and 22-17 in the third set, but rallied to take the third frame from the Lions (3-9, 1-2 Ivy) and stormed all the way back to claim the five-set victory.

Stillwell hit .466 in the match and terminated on seven or more kills in each of three sets while junior Payton Smith (Atherton, Calif.) tallied 11 kills in support.

Senior Rachele Killian (Laguna Beach, Calif.) handed out a season and team-high 35 assists to go with a season-best 14 digs for her first double-double of the season. Sophomore libero Melissa Cairo (Hillsborough, Calif.) and senior Shannon Frost (Santa Ana, Calif.) contributed 20 and 15 digs respectively.

After dropping the first two stanzas, the Bears faced a 22-17 deficit in set three. Undeterred, Brown rattled off five straight points, including three kills from Stillwell, to knot the score at 22-22. The hosts closed the 26-24 set win with four of the last five points, and Stillwell totaled nine kills in the set.

In set four, Brown turned a 10-4 deficit early in the period into an 18-13 advantage, outscoring the visitors 14-3 over the stretch. Columbia pulled within 21-19, but the Bears won four of the last five points for the 25-20 win. Stillwell landed 10 kills in the frame.

In the deciding set, the Bears earned an 8-6 advantage at the switch and captured seven of the last eight points to triumph 15-8 in set five. Stillwell added four more kills in the period.

Brown led 7-1 early in set one before Columbia countered to take a 13-10 lead. The Bears gained a 22-17 advantage, but the Lions came back to tie it at 23-23 on the way to a 26-24 win in extra points.
Both teams played within two points of one anther for the majority of set two with the score still tied at 20-20 as the frame witnessed 17 total ties. The Lions used a 5-0 run to end the frame for a 25-20 win.

Next, Brown plays two Ivy matches on the road next weekend at Harvard (Fri., Oct. 9, 7 p.m.) and at Dartmouth (Sat., Oct. 10, 5 p.m.).