Volleyball Opens NEWMAC Play with 3-0 Sweep of Emerson

WELLESLEY, Mass. -- First-year Yasmine Reece (New Rochelle, N.Y.) tallied 10 kills and classmate Samantha Hoang (Elk Grove, Calif.) added 22 digs to lead Wellesley College volleyball to a straight-set win over Emerson College in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) play on Tuesday night. The win lifts the Blue to 3-5 overall (1-0 in NEWMAC), while Emerson drops to 4-4 (0-1 NEWMAC) on the season.

Playing in their first match at the recently renovated Dorothy Towne Fieldhouse, Wellesley record its first win on the newly named on Gracia Mangano Martore '73 Court.

Wellesley's team defense -- highlighted by five team blocks and 64 digs -- held the visitors to just 13 kills for the match. Hoang's 22 digs led all players, while first year Michelle Li (Scarsdale, N.Y.) and sophomore Katie Yan (Cohoes, N.Y.) picked up ten digs apiece. 

Offensively, the Blue tallied 33 kills. Junior Brooke Fieldman (Greenwood Village, Colo.) hammered eight kills and first years Elise Griffin (Los Altos Hills, Calif.) and Samantha Ostenso (Hopkins, Minn.) chipped in four each. Li and junior Maddie Koh (Seattle, Wa) shared setting duties, combining for 28 assists in the win.

First year Kelley Guerra (Randolph, N.J.) led the Lions with six kills, while classmate Fara Cohen (Morristown, N.J.) tallied three kills and sophomore Brittany Schoellkopf (Pacific Palisades, Calif.) added two. Libero Sam Harton (Cartersville, Ga.) anchored the Emerson defense with 12 digs, and first year Moira Brennan (Glenview, Ill.) recorded nine assists in the loss.

Wellesley opened with a 25-14 victory in set one, breaking free from the Lions to score nine of the final ten points in the set, as Griffin put down the final kill to give Wellesley the 25-14 win. The Blue carried the momentum into the second set, earning a commanding 25-12 victory. Wellesley raced out to an 18-6 lead, scoring seven consecutive points with Hoang at the service line to put the middle frame out of reach.

The Blue grabbed the first three points of the third set and looked poised to close out the match quickly. However, the Lions rallied to tie the score at 4-all. Wellesley once again opened up a lead, racing to an 8-4 advantage, but a string of Wellesley errors opened the door for the Lions to climb back in, as the visitors tied the set for a second time, at 10-10.  

The teams then exchanged points, before Emerson got out to its first lead since scoring the first point of the second set, using three straight Wellesley errors to build a 14-11 advantage. Trailing for just the second time all night, Wellesley rallied to tie the score at 15-15. The Blue then added seven consecutive points, including a pair of aces from Yan, to jump to a 22-15 advantage. 

Both sides exchanged points to push the score to 22-17 before a kill from Guerra and three consecutive Wellesley errors helped Emerson close the gap to 24-21. However, the match would end on an Emerson serving error on the next point.

Emerson returns to action on Thursday, September 17, when they host Brandeis for a 7:00 pm non-conference contest. Wellesley will take the court on Saturday, September 19, when they travel to Rivier College for a tri-match with Regis College and the host Raiders.