Gedney Powers Wellesley Volleyball To 3-0 Sweep of Smith

WELLESLEY, Mass. – First year Lauren Gedney (Huntersville, N.C.) hit .565 with 14 kills to lead Wellesley College volleyball to a 3-0 (25-11, 25-14, 25-16) sweep over Smith College in New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) action on Tuesday at Dorothy Towne Fieldhouse.

Wellesley has now won six-straight matches to improve to 8-3 overall and 5-0 in NEWMAC competition.  Smith drops to 7-7 on the season and 0-4 in conference. 

Gedney finished as the match leader with 14 kills, committing just one error to total 14 kills for the second-straight game. Classmate Nikki Jensen (Castro Valley, Calif.) chipped in with six kills, while fellow first year Darina Postupaka (Tinley Park, Ill.) had four. Junior Samantha Hoang (Elk Grove, Calif.) had a match-high 16 digs for the Blue, while setter Michelle Li (Scarsdale, N.Y.) finished with a match-best 26 assists.

First year Amy Hagan (Owings, Md.) put down seven kills to lead the Pioneers, while classmate Caleigh Johnson (Georgetown, Tex.), and seniors Xela Miller (Grenada Hills, Calif.) and Elizabeth Peay (Lebanon, Conn.) each added three. Sophomores Kimani Freeman (Newark, N.J.) and Jody Huang (Cranston, R.I.) split the setting duties, combining for 13 assists. In the back row, senior Sakura Tamaki (New York, N.Y.) finished with a team-high 11 digs.

Wellesley hit .394 in the opening set, setting the tone for the match with a commanding 25-11 victory. The Blue then jumped to a 14-4 lead in set two, before cruising to a 25-14 final. The Blue trailed briefly to start the third game, but would eventually get out to a big lead, going up 13-7 following a kill from sophomore Bella Virgilio (Malvern, Pa.). A Smith error would end the match with the Blue taking the third set 25-16.

Wellesley will welcome non-conference Western New England University at 7:00 PM on Thursday, September 28. Smith will play at Wheaton in a tri-match that also includes Eastern Nazarene on Saturday, September 30.