DARTMOUTH, Mass. – Powered by dominant performances from sophomore
Emily Pogorelec and juniors
Kate Wade and
Chelsea Sanker, the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth women's volleyball team came away with another 3-0 win (25-22, 25-18, 25-16) over conference opponent Eastern Connecticut on Friday. The Corsairs have won 10 matches in a row and 18 consecutive sets. UMass Dartmouth remains undefeated in conference play at 7-0, locking in their best conference record the program has ever held. The Corsairs record improves to 17-6 overall, and 7-0 in the Little East Conference (LEC). The Warriors dip to 11-12 overall and slide to 3-4 in the LEC.
With this win, UMass Dartmouth Head Coach
Justin Turco recorded his 200
th career victory as a coach. Turco came to UMass Dartmouth by way of Salisbury, where he finished with an impressive record of 164-74. Turco has instantly turned around the UMD Women's Volleyball program, leading the Corsairs to a record of 36-14 in his first two seasons. He currently holds a career record of 200-88.
The Corsairs, who have been rolling of late, came out a little slow in the opening set. The Warriors were threatening to take a set from the Corsairs who had won 15 straight. Trailing 17-16 in the first set, senior
Maggie Sullivan took over the serve and led a 3-point run to take back the lead, featuring a powerful kill from senior
Devon Laing. Eastern continue to battle in the opening frame, narrowing the UMD lead to 22-21. A Wade kill and Pogorelec ace locked up the first set for the Corsairs, keeping their perfect run alive.
The second set was the most convincing of the three out of the Corsairs. Sanker and Wade highlighted the set with five and four kills, respectively. After falling behind 9-8 early in the second set, UMass Dartmouth rattled off a 12-2 run, taking a 20-11 advantage. The long run was capped off by three kills from wade, and a fourth from Sanker. The Warriors fought their way back into the set, with a three-point run bringing them within seven points, 24-18. Wade was able to close out the set with a kill for the 25
th point.
The Corsairs, having found their rhythm in the second set, jumped out to an early 8-3 lead in the third frame. Wade and senioir
Gabriella Monico each recorded two kills in the early stage of the set. After the Corsairs extended their leave to 12-5, Eastern Connecticut responded with four straight points, featuring two impressive kills by sophomore Taylor Thompson. The committee of seniors in Laing, Monico, and Sullivan closed out the contest with several kills, as the Corsairs cruised to yet another 3-0 victory.
UMass Dartmouth looked dominant once again as they stay unbeaten against conference opponents. Wade added 14 digs as she headed the attack with 12 kills and a service ace. Sanker finished off nine kills and had two block assists, while Laing recorded eight kills on .368 hitting and 11 digs. Freshman
Skye Peters and sophomore
Sabrina Bordone split action from the setter position, tallying 20 and 15 set assists, respectively. Peters added two service aces as well. Pogorelec showed why she is the reigning LEC Defensive Player of the Year, leading the match in digs with 31. Sullivan was dominant in front of the net, tallying three solo-blocks and two kills.
The shining spots for the Warriors were seven kills by senior Paige Savitsky, followed by Thompson who had six. Sophomore Liz Squier led the team with 14 set-assists. The defensive workload was carried by Sadie Blackwell and Brooke Praskievicz, who each tallied 16 digs.
The UMass Dartmouth women's volleyball team has a huge match ahead of them against the LEC top-seeded Plymouth State. The two 7-0 teams in the conference will finally face off on Saturday, November 4 at 4PM, to determine the #1 seed going into the Little East Conference Tournament.
