Women's Volleyball Splits Tri-Match With Loss to Norwich, Win Over Elms

NORTHFIELD, Vt. – Emmanuel Women's Volleyball finished their September with a tri-match split, falling to Norwich 3-2 (24-26, 25-21, 25-21, 7-25, 16-14) in the opening match, before securing a 3-1 win over Elms (21-25, 25-22, 25-14, 25-17) in a Saturday Great Northeast Athletic Conference tri-match.

Match 1: Norwich 3 – Emmanuel 2 (24-26, 25-21, 25-21, 7-25, 16-14)

The set-deciding frame in the opening match came via a comeback victory for Norwich to claim the win. The Saints led 13-10 in the final set but two Saints errors and a Cadets service ace tied things at 13-13. Emmanuel had one chance at match point after a Norwich service error made it 14-13, but the Cadets defended the point, going on to win three straight and claim the fifth set, 16-14.

The Saints came back from an early deficit in the opening set, trailing by six in the early going. Emmanuel trailed for the majority of the set, but a scoring run late in the first of 10-3 helped the Saints overtake the Cadets. Norwich defended three set points before a service ace for sophomore Isabella Marquez (Pembroke Pines, Fla.) gave EC a 26-24 set win.

The second set had both sides within three points throughout the entire set until the Cadets claimed the 25-21 win. Norwich won five of the last six points, capped off with a kill by Leah Mathewson to win the second set.

Another close set down the stretch went in favor of Norwich in the third. A five-point spurt late in the set lifted the Cadets to a 25-21 set win.

In the fourth, it was all Emmanuel from start to finish. Emmanuel started with a 10-2 lead in the opening dozen points. Norwich never scored more than two consecutive points in the fourth as a Saints 11-2 run to finish off the set gave them a 25-7 win.

Marquez finished the match with a team-high 16 kills to go along with 13 digs. Sophomore Wiktoria Galazyn (Plainville, Conn.) had 11 kills and nine digs. Junior Paula Tanguilig (Sandwich, Mass.) had a match-high 31 digs.

Match 2: Emmanuel 3 – Elms 1 (21-25, 25-22, 25-14, 25-17)

The Saints dropped the first set of their second match as they were unable to gain much momentum in the opening frame. EC trailed from start to finish as a Blazers kill by Alysha Izquierdo gave Elms a 25-21 set win.

Elms looked poised to take a 2-0 sets lead in the second, holding a 21-16 edge over Emmanuel. The next four points belonged to the Saints, including three kills by Marquez to draw EC to a 21-20 deficit. After an Elms points, the Saints regathered momentum with the final four points of the set, winning the second 25-22.

An Emmanuel run through the middle of the third proved pivotal in claiming the third set of the match. A 12-6 EC spurt helped them to a seven-point lead, 19-12. The Saints lead continued to grow until the final point on a Blazers error gave Emmanuel a 25-14 win.

Another middle of the set run, this time of 12-4 by Emmanuel, proved to make the difference in the fourth set and match win for the Saints. The set was tied 8-8 before the scoring run launched Emmanuel to a  20-12 lead. Match point was decided on another Elms error, giving the Saints a 25-17 set win and a 3-1 sets match victory.

Marquez finished with a career-high 22 kills combined with 17 digs. Tanguilig had a career-best 37 digs. Galazyn ended the afternoon with a double-double of 11 kills and 10 digs.

The Saints (9-4, 4-1 GNAC) return home to face Rivier on Wednesday, Oct. 4 at 7:00 p.m. at the Jean Yawkey Center.