Women's Volleyball Falls to Lasell, Norwich in Senior Day Tri-Match

THE BASICS 

Score: 
Match 1: Lasell 3 – Emmanuel 2 (20-25, 22-25, 25-15, 25-20, 17-15)
Match 2: Norwich 3 – Emmanuel 0 (25-10, 25-14, 25-18)

Records: 
Emmanuel College Saints (7-13, 3-6 GNAC)
Lasell University Lasers (14-11, 7-1 GNAC)
Norwich University Cadets (10-8, 4-5 GNAC)

Location: Boston, Mass. – Jean Yawkey Center/Yosinoff Court

Date: Saturday, October 15, 2022

THE LEAD – In the final home matches of the regular season, the Emmanuel Saints were swept in a tri-match on Saturday, falling 3-2 to Lasell in the morning match, followed by a loss to Norwich, 3-0, in the afternoon, as part of a Great Northeast Athletic Conference tri-match on EC Senior Day.

Prior to the Emmanuel vs. Norwich match, the Saints women's volleyball program recognized seniors Tatiana Correia (Peabody, Mass.), Kerry Shea (Tewksbury, Mass.), Rachel Coleman (Peabody, Mass.), and Julia Daggett (Hinesburg, Vt.), for their contributions to the program.

HOW IT HAPPENED (MATCH 1)

• After the Saints claimed the first two sets, the Lasers came back to claim sets three and four, setting up a five-set thriller in the day's opening match.
• In that fifth set, Lasell looked as though they would easily claim the comeback win, but the Saints had other ideas. The Lasers led 11-7, but a quick three-point burst would pull EC to within a point. LU steadied the momentum, eventually taking a 14-12 edge.
• The Saints would defend two match points, even setting up their own chance to win thanks to an assisted block later in the set by Shea and junior Seana Phillips (Middleboro, Mass.); a block that gave EC a 15-14 lead. Emmanuel couldn't capitalize on their chance to win the match as the Lasers claimed the final points thanks to an EC service error, a kill by sophomore McKenna McCool (Loomis, Calif.), and an attack error by Phillips, leading to Lasell's comeback win, claiming the fifth set, 17-15.
• In a closely contested first set, the Saints claimed five of the final six points, on their way to a 25-20 win. They followed that performance in the second with 11 team kills while hitting .296 from the floor to win the set 25-22.
• For the Lasers, set three's turning point came with a 7-0 scoring run that took the LU lead from five to a dozen at 22-10. Lasell would eventually claim the set, 25-15. In the fourth, the Lasers held off a late charge by Emmanuel, as LU won the final four points, taking the fourth, 25-20.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS (MATCH 1)

• McCool finished with a team-high 16 kills, hitting .250 from the floor, to go along with four digs and three aces.
• Sophomore Camila Lopez (Barquisimeto, Venezuela) added eight kills, four aces, and 12 digs.
• Shea set a new career-high for kills in the match with 17 on a .162 attack percentage.
• Phillips finished with a career-best 14 kills while hitting a team-high .286 from the floor.
• First-year Wiktoria Galazyn (Plainville, Conn.) matched a career-high with 11 kills while setting a career-best with four aces.
• Correia led all players in the match with 16 digs while Coleman led everyone in assists with 37.

HOW IT HAPPENED (MATCH 2)

• The opening set was all Cadets, thanks to a 9-0 run early in the set that gave Norwich a 14-4 lead. The Cadets would go on to close out the set with nine of the final 10 points, claiming the first, 25-10.
• In the second, with the match tied at 13-13, Norwich again turned up the pressure, this time finishing the set with a 12-1 scoring outburst that helped them to a 25-14 set victory.
• In the third and final set, despite multiple comeback attempts by the Saints, it was another scoring run, this time of 9-1, by the Cadets that would help Norwich to the straight sets sweep with a third set win of 25-18.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS (MATCH 2)

• Cadets senior Ana Lopez (Laredo, Texas) led the match with 12 kills, hitting .231 in the victory.
• Junior Leah Mathewson (North Chelmsford, Mass.) added eight kills on a .294 attack percentage.
• Junior Laura Farnum (North Andover, Mass.) finished with a match-best 18 digs.
• For the Saints, Shea added six kills, leading the team in match two.
• Phillips and sophomore Jaiden Greaves (Wells, Maine) added four kills each.

UP NEXT

• The Saints have a full week off before returning with another GNAC tri-match on Saturday, Oct. 22, with Dean and Elms. The Bulldogs host the Saints at 11:00 a.m. followed by EC and the Blazers at 1:00 p.m.
• The Lasers head out of the conference for their next match, an Oct. 18 contest against New England College at 6:00 p.m.
• The Cadets stay in GNAC play, hosting Simmons on Oct. 19 at 6:00 p.m.