UMass Dartmouth Sweeps Clark in Home Opener

DARTMOUTH, Mass. – In the first home match of the 2022 season, the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth volleyball team came away with a 3-0 (25-17, 25-19, 25-13) sweep over Clark Wednesday night at the Tripp Athletic Center.
 
It marked the first victory of the year for the Corsairs (1-1) and first of Head Coach Justin Turco's Corsair career. The Cougars (2-1) lost their first set and match this year all in the same night.
 
Junior Devon Laing posted a double-double with a match-leading 12 kills on a .407 attack percentage with 16 digs and five aces. Sophomore Kate Wade finished with 10 kills and seven digs, while junior Marley Alexander tallied seven kills, four digs and a pair of blocks. Freshman libero Emily Pogorelec notched 16 digs and the freshmen setter duo of Emma Rousseau and Sabrina Bordone had 17 and 12 assists respectively.
 
Clark hung around in the first set as an ace from Bordone gave the Corsairs a 12-10 advantage. A pair of kills by Alexander and one more from Wade sparked a 7-3 run late in the set with a couple of aces from Wade to eventually gain a 23-16 lead. UMass Dartmouth finished the first set with back-to-back kills by junior Maggie Sullivan and Bardone.
 
After Clark went up 5-2 to start the second set, the Corsairs quickly evened the score at six thanks to kills from Alexander and Laing. Clark would go back up, 10-6, but an 11-2 UMass Dartmouth run with six aces in the sequence boosted the Corsairs ahead, 17-12. Kills by Alexander, Laing, freshman Raelynn Perregaux and Sullivan closed the second set to give UMassD a 2-0 match lead.
 
It was all Corsairs in the third set. A pair of kills by Sullivan and Laing jumpstarted an 18-5 run to open things up. When UMass Dartmouth hit 21 points, Clark rallied for a 7-2 run to make it 23-13, but a kill by Wade ended the match and gave the Corsairs the win.
 
UMass Dartmouth hosts a tri-match on Saturday. The Corsairs begin with Husson at 11 a.m. and close with Framingham State at 3 p.m.