Sophomore Izzy Seebold had 36 assists and seven digs (Frank Poulin).
Sophomore Izzy Seebold had 36 assists and seven digs (Frank Poulin).

Blue Volleyball Tops Wheaton, 3-1, in NEWMAC Action

WELLESLEY, Mass. -- Wellesley College volleyball shook off an opening set setback to down visiting Wheaton College, 3-1 (23-25, 25-19, 25-19, 25-16), in a New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) match on Tuesday night at Dorothy Towne Fieldhouse. 

Wellesley extended its home court winning streak to 19 consecutive matches while improving to 9-3 overall and 3-0 in conference play. Wheaton slides to 10-5 and 1-1 in the NEWMAC with the defeat. 

Junior Lauren Gedney (Huntersville, N.C.) tallied 18 kills to lead the Blue, finishing the match with a .325 attack percentage on 40 attempts. Sophomore Nicole Doerges (San Marino, Calif.) added 12 kills, four aces and four digs for the Blue, who also got three kills, 36 assists and seven digs from sophomore Izzy Seebold (Concord, N.C.). Senior Meghan Shoop (Cypress, Calif.) and sophomore Nikki Jensen (Castro Valley, Calif.) each added 12 digs.

First year Bailey Madrzyk (Barrington, Ill.) put down 12 kills to lead the Lyons. Junior Julia Palomba (San Carlos, Calif.) added nine kills and a match-high 14 digs for Wheaton, while sophomore Haley McCreight (Greenville, R.I.) chipped in with five kills and four total blocks. Senior setter Becca Houghton (Emmaus, Penn.) finished with a team-best 29 assists to go along with three service aces and 13 digs. 

Wheaton seized control of a back-and-forth opening set to jump ahead 1-0 in the match. With the score tied 22-22, the Lyons scored three of the next four points, ultimately winning the set on a Blue service error. Wellesley jumped ahead 6-2 in the second set and held the lead for the rest of way to tie the match, 1-1. The Blue had leads of 12-6 and 21-13 before earning a 25-19 win on an ace from Doerges. 

The Blue fell in an early 5-1 hole in the third set but used an 11-0 run to regain control of the set and ultimately the match. A kill from Gedney put the Blue up 12-5, Wellesley then extended the lead to 20-13 before holding off a push from the Lyons to take another 25-19 win. Wellesley closed out the night with the team's best effort in the fourth set, hitting .276 with 11 kills in a 25-16 victory. 

Both teams continue NEWMAC play on Saturday, September 28. Wellesley will travel to WPI for a 1:00 PM match. Wheaton will travel to Clark for a tri-match featuring the host Cougars (11:00 AM) and Conn. College (1:00 PM).