Wellesley Volleyball Beats Roger Williams, Falls to Johnson and Wales

BRISTOL, R.I. - Wellesley College volleyball defeated host Roger Williams 3-2 before falling 3-0 to Johnson and Wales on Saturday at Roger Williams' Campus Rec Center Gymnasium.

The Blue (7-12) were lead by sophomore Jennifer Yu (Shanghai, China) with 22 total kills, sophomore Mikayla Tansil (Warren, Mich.) with 66 assists, and first year Kaija Kunze-Hoeg (Eagan, Minn.) with 39 digs between the two matches.

Wellesley 3, Roger Williams 2

Wellesley opened the day by hanging on to win a 3-2 (25-19, 20-25, 25-23, 20-25, 20-18) match over host Roger Williams. Sophomore Rachel Xu (Beijing, China) led the Blue with 17 kills, while Yu, junior Kate Salembier (Sierra Madre, Calif.), and first year Kennedy Mayo (Long Branch, N.J.) all had double-digit kills. Tansil added 50 assists, and Kunze-Hoeg had 26 digs for Wellesley.

First year Kaylee Jackson (Naugatuck, Conn.) led the Hawks (5-16) with 16 kills and 21 digs, while teammates Izzy Unsworth (Milford, N.H.), Rachel Borzone (Syosset, N.Y.), and Ava Mattiucci (North Kingston, R.I.) each had at least 10 kills for RWU.

The Blue took a strong first set, while the Hawks took advantage of a .345 hitting percentage in the second set to even up the match. Important late kills from Xu and Yu gave the Blue set three, while Jackson sealed the fourth for the Hawks with a kill. The fifth was a back and forth affair, with a kill from Xu finally giving the Blue a 20-18 set and the victory.

Johnson and Wales 3, Wellesley 1

Johnson and Wales earned a 3-0 (25-15, 25-16, 15-18) win over Wellesley in the Blue's second match of the day.

Junior Peyton Oliver (Ramsey, N.J.) paced the Wildcats (12-8) with 15 kills and Senior Emily Corbett (Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.) put on a defense clinic with 28 digs. Junior Sarah Miller (Scarborough, Ontario) added 12 kills on her own in the straight sets victory.

Tansil led the Blue with 16 assists and 20 digs in a well-balanced effort. Kunze-Hoeg and Yu each had at least 10 digs, and five players had at least three kills for Wellesley.

The Wildcats controlled all three sets, never trailing after 13-13 in the first set or 10-10 in the second set. The three set saw a balanced first half before the Wildcats took a 22-15 lead on the back of a four-point run. JWU finished a 25-18 set to earn their victory.

Wellesley heads off the Smith for a New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) game on Tuesday at 7:00 PM.