UMass Dartmouth Suffers Four-Set Setback at Clark

WORCESTER, Mass. - Freshman Kate Wade posted her third consecutive double-double in as many matches in UMass Dartmouth's 3-1 defeat at Clark University Wednesday night.

Wade finished the night with 13 kills and 10 digs for the Corsairs (1-2), while freshman Lauryn Latimore recorded eight kills, and Chelsea Sanker had six. Junior Vanessa Barreto led the team with 15 digs, junior Courtney Carreiro sent 12 assists, and sophomore Marley Alexander and freshman Monika Kristjansdotter each had two blocks. 

For the Cougars (5-0), junior Claudia Rivera led the team with 12 kills, while senior Marimo Oka tallied 15 digs, and freshman Yvanna Torres had 31 assists.

Clark took the first set, 25-20. The Cougars jumped ahead to a 10-4 lead with five kills and two aces. The Corsairs then outscored Clark, 9-6, thanks to kills by Latimore, Wade, sophomore Devon Laing, and an ace by Kristjansdotter, to close the gap to 16-13. Kills by Laing and Sanker were not enough to further close the gap as the Cougars closed the first set on a 9-7 run.

Kills by Laing and Kristjansdotter jump started the Corsairs in the second set to an early 6-1 advantage. The Cougars then answered back with six kills of their own to eventually take a 10-9 lead. That did not phase UMassD as the two teams traded points until kills by Wade, sophomore Maggie Sullivan, and an ace from Barreto put the road team on top, 19-16. Latimore, Kristjansdotter and Sanker then smacked down kills to take the set, 25-22, and tie the match at one.

Neither team had any room to breathe in the third set as both sides traded points to bring the score to 15-14 with Clark on top. The Cougars then closed the set on a 10-5 run to take the set, 25-19, and head into the fourth on top.

Clark used its momentum to take a 15-9 advantage in the fourth set. Just as the home team thought they had things wrapped up, sophomore Gabriella Monico scored three-straight points with a kill and back-to-back aces to spark a 15-7 run and give the Corsairs a 24-22 lead. The Cougars then converted on four consecutive kills to take the set and the match.

UMass Dartmouth is back in action for two matches on Saturday at Connecticut College. The Corsairs first take on Coast Guard at 11 a.m., and Conn College at 2:30 p.m.