WALTHAM, Mass. – It was a double-victory afternoon for the UMass Dartmouth volleyball team, who claimed a pair of wins in tri-match action at Brandeis University on Saturday. The Corsairs defeated Endicott College, 3-1 (25-18, 24-26, 25-13, 25-18), before besting the host Judges, 3-2 (25-21, 16-25, 25-15, 18-25, 15-6) to improve to 8-6 on the season.
In the opening match against the Gulls, junior outside hitter and captain
Allison Pate led the way, recording 17 kills with just three errors on 47 swings. She added two block assists with 18 digs. Sophomore opposite
Olivia Seutter posted 10 kills with two block assists and a dig, while rookie outside hitter
Ashley Serverius had seven kills, an assist and 13 digs.
Senior defensive specialist and captain
Emily Pogorelec notched 25 digs with 10 assists, junior setter
Skye Peters posted 21 assists with four service aces and 12 digs, while rookie middle blocker
Aleek Kuot had a block solo and six block assists to go along with five kills, an ace and three digs.
Locked in a 1-1 tie after the opening two sets, the Corsairs and Gulls kept things close in the third with neither team leading by more than two points. UMD owned an 11-10 lead and broke it open with a four-point swing – including kills from Pate and Kuot, along with an ace from senior setter
Sabrina Bordone – to grab a 15-10 lead.
Endicott got a kill from Hannah Maguire to make it 19-13, but the Corsairs went on to record six straight points to close out the third set – aided by three errors, kills from Seutter and Serverius, along with an ace from Peters.
In the fourth set, the Corsairs jumped out to a 12-6 advantage. The Gulls took advantage of several UMD errors to close the gap to 15-11, but three kills from Pate helped build up a 21-13 lead. Endicott continued to press, going on a five-point run to make it a 21-18 game, but the Corsairs benefited from three errors and another Bordone ace to close out the match.
Against the Judges, the Corsairs battled back from a 1-1 tie, taking a 2-1 lead with the 25-15 set lead. Brandeis rallied back, posting an 18-25 win in the fourth to force the fifth set. The Corsairs jumped out to a big lead and held tight to it on the court switch to seal the victory.
Seutter paced the way in the five-set affair, recording 21 kills with no errors on 31 swings for an astounding .677 hitting percentage. She added two block assists. Pate posted 18 kills with 13 digs, a block solo and a block assist, while Serverius added 12 kills and just two errors on 27 swings (.370). She added a block assist and seven digs. Peters posted 26 assists with two aces, while Pogorelec had five assists with 16 digs. Kuot once again paced the blocking effort with a block solo and four block assists.
UMass Dartmouth is back on the court on Saturday, September 27 when it hosts Little East-rival Southern Maine at 12pm, before taking on Trinity at 4pm in the Tripp Athletic Center. The Huskies and the Bantams will square off in the 2pm match.
