SHARKS NIP SAINTS, 3-1, IN DIG PINK MATCH

BOSTON, Mass. – Emmanuel College suffered a 3-1 setback at the hands of neighboring Simmons College in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) women's volleyball match played in Emmanuel's Jean Yawkey Center on Thursday night.  With the victory, Simmons improves to 9-13 on the season and 7-2 in GNAC action, while handing the Saints their first conference loss of the season.  Emmanuel now stands at 19-10 overall and 6-1 in league play.

The Colleges of the Fenway (COF) rivalry also marked Emmanuel's "Dig Pink" contest, as both the Saints and the Sharks donned pink warm-up jerseys. Coaches and spectators wore pink attire and the referees officiated the match with pink whistles, all in recognition of Breast Cancer Awareness.

The Saints jumped out to an early lead, posting a 25-19 win in the opening set.  The Sharks successfully battled back taking the next three sets, 25-22, 25-21 and 25-11.

Danielle Rose (Wilkes-Barre, Pa.) and Cassie Chruscielski (Duluth, Minn.) led the Saints' offense in the opening set, slamming down four kills apiece.  The duo accounted for four of the hosts' final six points in the set one win.

The Sharks rebounded in the second, surging out to an early lead.  Emmanuel was able to forge ties twice at 8-all and 11-all, before the visitors took the lead for good.  Simmons went on a 9-1 run, backed by the strong serving of Sarah Woodward (Deerfield, Mass.) to jump out in front, 20-12.  The Saints then put together a 9-3 run to bring the set back into contention, with EC trailing, 23-21.  Kills from Simmons rookies Emmee Ashby (Payson, Ariz.) and Woodward ended it for the Saints, as the Sharks pulled out the 25-22 set two win.

The third set saw seven ties in the early going, with the final one coming at 14-all.  The Sharks then rattled off a 6-0 run, capitalizing on several EC attack errors. A strong kill from Simmons sophomore Abby Hary (Westfield, Mass.) ended the set at 25-21 in favor of the Sharks.

The visitors led end to end in the fourth, powering out to a 7-0 lead.  Ashby was dominant throughout, slamming down five kills in the set, as the Sharks cruised to the 25-11 win and the 3-1 match victory.

Ashby finished with a match-high 16 kills, coming off of 28 swings with only three errors (.464 hitting).  Woodward recorded nine kills and 13 digs, while Hart and Nicole Alberghini (Northborough, Mass.) chipped in with seven kills apiece.  Hart added eight blocks to her stat line (1 BS, 7 BA).  Sophomore libero Alex Itasaka (Bradford, Mass.) gathered a match-high 19 digs, while sophomore setter Andalyn Duke (Litchfield Park, Ariz.) handed out 34 assists in the win.

Emmanuel was led by a 14-kill, five-dig effort from Rose.  Chruscielski tallied 11 kills and eight digs, while sophomore middle Kaitlyn Atkinson (Brookline, N.H.) finished with 10 kills.  Junior setter Shannon Dudley (Morro Bay, Calif.) dished out 31 assists to go along with her team-high 18 digs in the effort for the Saints.

Emmanuel will play again this Saturday, October 25th, when the Saints travel to West Hartford, Connecticut for a GNAC tri-match with the host Blue Jays of the University of Saints Joseph and the Wildcats of Johnson & Wales University.  Simmons is also back in action on Saturday, playing in a GNAC tri-match at Suffolk University with Mount Ida College.