Volleyball Secures Second Seed in MASCAC Tournament with Victory over Westfield

Framingham, Mass. – The Framingham State University volleyball team secured the second seed in next week's Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) Tournament with a 3-0 victory over Westfield State University in the opening contest of a tri-match this morning at the Athletic Center.

The Blue of Wellesley College walked away with a pair of victories in the final two matches defeating Westfield State and Framingham State 3-0.

With the wins, the Blue improve to 20-5 on the year, while the split moves the Rams to 14-17 overall and 5-2 in the MASCAC. With the losses, the Owls fall to 12-15 on the year and are also 5-2 in the league.  The Rams are the second seed in the tournament by virtue of this morning's head-to-head victory over the Owls, who will be the third seed in the upcoming MASCAC Tournament.

In the day's opening match the Rams secured the victory over the Owls by scores of 25-18, 25-12 and 25-11.  The Rams were paced by nine kills apiece from freshmen Kelly Brinkman (Gardiner, NY) and Brandey Rodriguez (Lawrence, Mass.).  Rodriguez also recorded three blocks.  Classmate Michaela Cronin (Hampden, Mass.) added seven kills and a pair of blocks, while junior Mackenzie Whalen (Norton, Mass.) chipped in with 31 set assists and 11 digs. Senior Vicki Anderson (Attleboro, Mass.) and sophomore Deirdre Fay (Cornwall, NY) recorded a team-best 13 digs apiece.

The Owls were led by eight kills and three digs from junior Brianna Starkey (Rockland, Mass.), while sophomore Natasha Belardo (Springfield, Mass.) added six kills and three digs.  Junior Lizzie Taylor (Medfield, Mass.) chipped in with 16 defensive digs and two service aces, while freshman Jess Haradon (Mansfield, Mass.) added seven digs.

Wellesley College rolled to the victory in the second match of the day defeating the Owls by scores of 25-5, 25-20 and 25-16.  The Blue were led by eight kills and six service aces from freshman Lauren Gedney.  Junior Ashley Peng added seven kills and 10 digs, while classmate Michelle Li added four kills, 24 assists, and four digs.

The Owls were paced in the match by eight kills on 27 attempts from freshman Ainsley MacLeod (Hampden, Mass.), while Taylor recorded 21 digs with a service ace.  Senior Brigid Murray (Norfolk, Mass.) added 14 assists and three digs in the setback.

In the day's final match, the Blue defeated the Rams by scores of 25-15, 25-15, and 25-11.  The Blue were led by 10 kills on 20 attempts with just two errors for a .400 hitting percentage for Gedney.  Junior Samantha Ostenso added seven kills, while Samantha Hoang paced the back row with 12 digs. Li chipped in with 22 assists and five digs.

The Rams were led in the match by eight kills from freshman Grace Coy (Mendon, Mass.), while Fay and Cronin recorded three kills apiece in the match.  Anderson once again led the back row play with 12 digs, while Fay finished with seven and sophomore Alexandra Fish (Lincoln, RI) added eight.

The Rams are back in action next week in semifinal round of the 2017 MASCAC Volleyball Tournament where they will face the winner of the quarterfinal match between third seed Westfield State and sixth seed Salem State at top seed Worcester State on Saturday at 5 p.m.