Blue Volleyball Rolls to 3-0 Win Over Albertus Magnus in Season Opener

WELLESLEY, Mass. -- The Wellesley College volleyball team flew past the Falcons of Albertus Magnus for a 3-0 sweep (25-17, 25-15, 25-13), in the 2021 season opener on Wednesday night at Dorothy Towne Fieldhouse. 

It was the first game played for both squads since 2019. With the victory, Wellesley starts off 1-0 for the third consecutive season, as Albertus Magnus of the Great Northeast Athletic Conference drops to 0-1.

Senior captain Nicole Doerges (San Marino, Calif.) set the pace for the Blue, tallying 13 kills on 31 attempts. Sophomore Maddie Kao (Alameda, Calif.) and Junior TylerBell Smith (Frisco, Texas) each added six kills in 12 attempts for the Blue. As a team, Wellesley recorded 15 service aces, including six from Doerges, three from Izzy Seebold (Concord, N.C.), and two apiece from Lizzy Jessen (Burbank, Calif.) and Tiffany Shou (San Jose, Calif.). In her collegiate debut, first year Rachel Xu (Beijing, China) posted three kills and two digs. Claire Bialek (Brookline, Mass.) tallied a match high 13 digs.

For the Falcons, first year Elayna Beutel (Prospect, Conn.) and junior Diana Kalman (East Haven, Conn.) led the way with five kills each. Junior Taina Vargas (Bridgeport, Conn.) led the Falcons with seven digs for the match. Albertus finished with a -.029 kill percentage and just one service ace.

Wellesley started off on the right note, taking the opening set by a score of 25-17. After leading 8-6 early in the first set, the Blue went on a 8-0 run and took a commanding 10 point lead. The Falcons forced a late push, but Kao ended the set with a kill for the Blue.

The Blue would not have it as easy in the second set, quickly falling behind 6-0. Wellesley would battle back going on a 6-0 run of its own including three consecutive aces from Seebold. The Blue dominated the remainder of the set, taking the final 18 of 21 points scored to edge out Albertus Magnus, 25-15. Wellesley remained hot in the third set, coasting past the Falcons 25-13 to earn the sweep.

Wellesley will be back in action at home on Saturday, as the Blue hosts Rivier University at 1:00 PM. Albertus Magnus will play its home opener this Saturday, with a double header against Husson (11:00 AM) and Suffolk (3:00 PM).