Sophomore Meghan Shoop (Lauren Luo)
Sophomore Meghan Shoop (Lauren Luo)

Blue Volleyball Sweeps Endicott, Falls To Roger Williams at MIT Invitational

WELLESLEY, Mass. – Wellesley College volleyball dropped a 3-1 (22-25, 25-20, 25-21, 25-22) final to Roger Williams University before bouncing back with a 3-0 (25-18,25-16,25-23) sweep of Endicott College on Saturday at the MIT Invitational. 

The Blue finished the tournament 2-1, with victories over SUNY Geneseo and Endicott, to move to 3-3 on the season. Wellesley first year Lauren Gedney (Huntersville, N.C.) was named to the All-Tournament team after finishing the weekend with 46 kills, 25 digs and four aces. 

Roger Williams 3, Wellesley 1  (22-25, 25-20, 25-21, 25-22)

Sophomore Lara Loiacono (Lynbrook, N.Y.) posted 12 kills and junior Nicki Fallsi (Salem, N.H.) added 11 kills and seven aces to secure a 3-1 win for the Hawks in the opener. Senior Meghan Chartier (West Point, N.Y.) finished with a match-best 19 digs and sophomore setter Julia Fields (Cortlandt Manor, N.Y.) tallied 42 assists and a pair of aces, as Roger Williams shook-off a first set setback to win three-straight games in the match.

Gedney racked up 19 kills to lead the Blue offense and classmate Nikki Jensen (Castro Valley, Calif.) chipped in with 11 kills. Junior setter Michelle Li (Scarsdale, N.Y.) topped 40 assists for the second-straight match, finishing with 41. Li also had 13 digs, while sophomore Meghan Shoop (Cypress, Calif) had a team-high 16, junior Samantha Hoang (Elk Grove, Calif.) added 15 and senior Alina Mota (Glendora, Calif.) had 11. 

Leading 24-20 at the end of the first set, Wellesley dropped three straight points before they eventually closed out the opener on an RWU error. Unfortunately, the Blue went on to drop the next three sets by scores of 25-20, 25-21, and 25-22, to drop the match 3-1. Wellesley led late in the second set, but a 6-0 run swung the game in the Hawks' favor. The Blue would also go on to lead early in the third and fourth set, but could not hold back Roger Williams in the late games.

Wellesley 3, Endicott 0 (25-18,25-16,25-23)

Gedney once again led the Blue, this time with 11 kills, as Wellesley rebounded from the first match with a 3-0 sweep of Endicott. Jensen totaled eight kills and junior Yasmine Reece (New Rochelle, N.Y.) tacked on six for the Blue. First year Becca Aristotelidis (San Antonio, Texas) recorded seven digs, with Hoang and Li each adding five more in the nightcap. Li also finished with 32 assists to pace a Blue attack that hit a season-best .239 in the match.

Endicott hit just .126 in the match, paced by eight kills from first year Nicole Winkler (Southborough, Mass.) and seven kills from sophomore Alex Dippel (Fallston, Md.). Sophomore setter Zoey Gifford (Natick, Mass.) had 14 assists in the setback, while senior Cydney Pierce (Carpinteria, Calif.) totaled a match-high 10 digs for the Gulls, who are now 2-5 on the season after dropping all three of their matches at the MIT Invitational.

Wellesley ran out to a 17-10 lead in the opening set, eventually leading by scores of 20-14 and 22-15 before taking the 25-18 victory in the opener. Trailing 8-4 in the second game, Wellesley scored 11 of the next 12 points in the set to turn the four-point deficit into a six-point lead. The Blue went on to close out the 25-16 win and take a 2-0 lead in the match. Wellesley then put together the team's most complete effort of the match in the third set, hitting .351 with 16 kills to down Endicott 25-23 and earn the victory.

Wellesley will open the 2017 New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) season on Tuesday night, September 12, with a 7:00 PM match at Emerson.