The St. John’s volleyball team defeated Villanova 3-2 (17-25, 25-23, 25-15, 16-25, 15-13) Sunday in its second conference game of the season.

The Red Storm (14-3, 2-0) were forced to fight through sluggish starts in every set, but finished in dramatic fashion with timely kills and textbook blocking, propelling them to their second conference win in as many attempts.

The Johnnies were led by senior Milica Krstjevic, who had 17 kills, and freshmen Karen Palgutova, who had 13 kills.The Red Storm’s intensity was never in question during the match against Villanova (5-9, 0-2), but Friday’s game against Georgetown
did have an effect on the team’s start, head coach Joanne Persico said.

“We burned a lot of energy Friday night [vs. Georgetown],” Persico said. “I thought we came out a little sluggish, but
I thought we finished really strong and did what we had to do, which was come out with a win.”

The win at Carneseca Arena improved Persico’s team’s home record to 7-1.

The Johnnies have now won three straight matches at home.

“I think since we have the fans here [we’re doing well] just like any home court in any sport,” said Persico. “We like our home arena, the girls play hard for their school.”

The Red Storm will face another Big East rival when Connecticut come to Carnesseca Arena on Saturday.

But before the Huskies make their trek to Queens, Persico will make sure her players are well rested after a strenuous weekend.

“The first thing we need to do is get healthy, take care of injuries and take care of us mentally, and we will work on UConn, probably on Tuesday,” she said.