BABSON TOO MUCH FOR WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL IN NON-CONFERENCE PLAY

BABSON PARK, Mass.—Five different players recorded at least four kills and Babson College hit .272 as a team en route to a 3-0 sweep (25-9, 25-15, 25-16) of visiting Emmanuel College in non-conference women's volleyball action on Wednesday night at Staake Gymnasium.

With the win, Babson improves to 4-0 for the first time since 2008, while Emmanuel drops to 0-4 on the year.

First-year Allie Puccio (New Hartford, N.Y.) led all players with nine kills and four service aces, while sophomore Kristin Carosotto (East Greenwich, R.I.) and first-year Gaby Miller (Miami, Fla.) both added five kills apiece. Junior Abby Beecher (Pittsford, N.Y.) finished with a match-high 11 digs, and the sophomore duo of Elizabeth Cameron (El Dorado Hills, Calif.) and Emily Woodward (Deerfield, Mass.) combined to dish out 32 assists.

Sophomore Marissa Cataldo (Melrose, Mass.) finished with four kills, while junior Katharine Journeay (Hampton, N.H.) recorded seven digs to lead the Saints, who hit just -.051 as a team in the loss.

The Green and White hit .389 with 11 kills to cruise to a 25-9 opening-set win. Emmanuel hung tough early in the second set and tied the frame at 11 on a service ace by junior Mary Shelow (Miami, Fla.) before the Beavers ripped off eight straight points to take command of the game. Junior Gizem Yilmaz (Istanbul, Turkey) had two kills and Puccio served up a pair of aces during the run.

The Saints led by as many as four early in the third set, but five kills by Miller and a pair of aces by first-year Cassidy Witten (Honolulu, Hawaii) sparked an 12-2 run that put Babson in front 19-10. Emmanuel pulled back within six on three occasions, but Beecher and first-years Rachel Williams (Chicago, Ill.) and Sabrina Lechner (Novato, Calif.) recorded consecutive kills to close out the match.

Babson returns to action on Friday when it opens play at the MIT Invitational against 15^th-ranked La Verne at 6 p.m. Emmanuel takes on Eastern Nazarene in its home opener on Thursday at 7:30 p.m.

MATCH NOTES

• The Saints are now 10-15 all-time against Babson and have dropped four of the last five matches between the teams.
• Babson extended its home winning streak to 14 matches, 10 of which have come in three sets.
• The Green and White has recorded at least 38 kills in each of its first four matches and is hitting .293 as a team on the year.
• The Beavers have won 58 straight matches when taking the first two sets going back to September 21, 2013.

*Release courtesy of Babson College Sports Information Dept.