Volleyball Sweeps Tri-Match with Worcester State & WPI
Framingham, Mass. – The Framingham State University volleyball team defeated Worcester State University 3-0 this morning in a Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) match and defeated WPI 3-0 in a non-conference match to sweep a tri-match today at Framingham's Athletic Center. WPI defeated Worcester State 3-2 in the day's other match.
With the pair of victories the Rams improve to 21-4 on the season and remain unbeaten in the MASCAC at 4-0, while the Lancers are now 6-16 overall and 2-2 in the conference. With the split WPI improves to 7-16 on the season.
Framingham State remains in a tie atop the MASCAC volleyball standings with Westfield State after the victory over Worcester State. The Rams and the Owls meet on November 2nd in what could be a clash for the conference title.
The Rams took the first set easily against the Lancers by a score of 25-13. The Lancers led early in the second set (12-10) before the Rams came back and took the lead, 17-15, on an ace from sophomore Danielle Girard (Tivoli, NY) and a monster kill from freshman Alycia Rackliffe (Feeding Hills, Mass.). The Rams extended the lead to 23-19 before Worcester State pulled within one at 24-23, but a Lancer hitting error ended the set 25-23 in favor of the Rams. In the third Worcester once again grabbed the early lead, but the Rams used a run to take a 17-10 lead before eventually securing the win in the match with a 25-17 victory in the third.
The Rams were led in the opener by 11 kills and five digs from Rackliffe, while classmate Julia Wan (South Deerfield, Mass.) chipped in with seven kills, 10 digs and four aces. Girard finished with six kills and 10 digs, while junior Maribeth Martin (Barnstable, Mass.) picked up 19 set assists.
Junior Alyssa Jasper (Rockland, Mass.) led the Lancers with a team-high 16 kills, two aces and five digs. Senior Vicki O'Brien (Canton, Mass.) was solid in the back row chipping in with 24 digs and just one reception error while also picking up a pair of aces. Junior Amanda Lewis (Poughkeepsie, NY) racked up 23 set assists in the opener for the Lancers to go along with nine digs.
In the days second match the Lancers and the Engineers went to five sets with the Engineers taking the thrilling 3-2 win. WPI won the opening two sets by scores of 25-13 and 25-23 while the Lancers took the third 25-17 and narrowly escaped with the fourth on a WPI error, 28-26.
The Engineers took control of the decisive set jumping out to a 7-1 advantage, but the Lancers would not go away quietly and stormed back tying the set at 11 all. WPI received an ace from freshman Caroline Meyer (Easton, Mass.) and reclaimed the lead for good eventually settling for the 15-11 victory.
The Engineers were led by the trio of freshman Kenzie Whalen (Hollis, NH), senior Holly Ganser (Seward, AK) and freshman Maddy Werth (Bedford, Mass.). Whalen recorded a team-best 16 kills on 39 attempts, while Ganser chipped in with 14 and Werth added 12. Freshman Cassandra Tomerlin (La Quinta, CA) was solid in the back row for the Engineers with a match-high 32 digs and two aces, while sophomore Jenny Wallace (Holden, Mass.) picked up 21 and Meyer finished with 39 assists and an ace.
Jasper led the Lancers in their final match of the day with a game-best 24 kills and six digs. Senior Megan Brown (Dartmouth, Mass.) also had a strong game with 14 kills, an ace and 22 digs. Sophomore Kaylee Leduc (Swansea, Mass.) chipped in with 18 digs, while Lewis finished with 35 set assists.
The Rams closed the day with a 3-0 victory over WPI by scores of 25-19, 25-17 and 25-9. Rackliffe led the Rams with 14 kills on 15 attempts with just one error, while Wan finished the game with 10 kills and nine digs. Martin picked up 24 assists, while junior Morgan Drew (North Easton, Mass.) added 13.
WPI received a team best six kills from Ganser in the loss to the Rams, while Tomerlin chipped in with an ace and 14 digs. Meyer recorded 12 assists, while Wallace made 17 service receptions without an error.
The Rams return to action on Tuesday evening when they travel to Mount Ida for a non-conference game at 6 pm. The Lancers return to action on Wednesday with a MASCAC match at Bridgewater State, while the Engineers play a NEWMAC match on Wednesday evening at Springfield College.