WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. – It was a tough day of action for the UMass Dartmouth women's volleyball team, which fell on the road against Williams College and Middlebury College in non-conference action at Chandler Athletic Center in Williamstown, Mass., on Saturday. The Corsairs fell 3-2 (23-25, 25-22, 23-25, 25-21, 12-15) to the homestanding Ephs before shouldering a 3-0 (18-25, 26, 28, 22, 25) loss to the Panthers.
In the loss to Williams, the Corsairs battled back from a 1-0 deficit, breaking loose from a tight game to take a 14-11 lead on kills from senior outside hitter
Kate Wade and rookie right side
Olivia Seutter. Holding a 17-14 lead, the Corsairs went on a 5-0 run, which included back-to-back kills from senior opposite
Chelsea Sanker to build a 22-14 margin. The Ephs pulled it to within two, but a kill from Seutter closed out the set victory for the 1-1 match score.
Williams claimed set three and the Corsairs battled back in set four, opening an 8-2 lead behind multiple errors and a Wade kill. Holding the 14-7 lead, UMass Dartmouth saw the Ephs answer, closing the gap to 14-10. A strong run saw the game move to an 18-all score, but a 3-0 run and kills from Wade and Seutter down the stretch helped the visitors tie the match at 2-2.
Fifth set was another close affair as the Corsairs answered down 7-3, scoring four straight points to tie it. The Ephs built up a 13-9 lead and UMassD battled back to 13-12, but kills from Kate Lane and Keely Campuzano sealed the victory for Williams.
Wade finished with 17 kills with an assist, a block solo and two block assists, to go along with eight digs. Seutter added 13 kills with three block assists and three digs, while Sanker chipped in with 12 kills and just one error on 30 total attempts, posting three block assists and a dig. Sophomore setter
Skye Peters had 25 assists with two service aces and four digs, while junior defensive specialist
Emily Pogorelec posted three assists, three aces and 26 digs.
Against Middlebury, the Corsairs found themselves down 15-5 early in the first set, but battled back behind a pair of kills from Seutter to close the gap to 17-14. UMassD closed it to 22-18, taking advantage of an attacking error, but the Panthers dropped in three straight for the set win.
Second set was a close battle throughout as neither team gave much of a lead beyond a point. The squads were tied at 20 after a kill from sophomore middle hitter
Maddie Carter and the Corsairs grabbed a 25-24 lead following a service error and an ace from senior middle blocker
Monika Kristjansdottir.
Middlebury answered, regaining a 26-25 lead before a kill from Carter tied the set once more at 26-all. The Panthers got a pair of kills to close out the set.
In the final set, the Corsairs opened with the lead, but Middlebury bounced back with a 6-0 run to take the 11-8 lead. A pair of kills from Wade helped close the gap to 19-16 late in the frame, and the Corsairs closed the gap 22-21 behind a 5-0 run, but could not hold on for the set win as Middlebury took the match.
Wade finished with 13 kills against the Panthers, adding two assists, two aces, a block assist and eight digs. Seutter added 11 kills, while Peters posted 17 assists and six digs. Pogorelec finished with six assists, a service ace and 25 digs.
UMass Dartmouth returns to the court next Saturday, traveling to Gorham, Maine for a match-up against the University of Southern Maine. Match time against the Huskies is 12pm, followed by a neutral site match-up against Emmanuel College at 2pm.
