Blue Volleyball Caps Regular Season With 3-0 Win at Brandeis

WALTHAM, Mass. -- Wellesley College volleyball closed out the regular season with a 3-0 (25-11, 25-16, 25-19) non-conference victory over Brandeis University on Thursday at Red Auerbach Arena. 

The Blue will head into the postseason with a 21-9 overall mark. Wellesley will host a New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Tournament match next week. Brandeis moves to 4-18 on the season. 

Junior Nikki Jensen (Castro Valley, Calif.) finished with 11 kills on 17 attempts to lead the Blue. Jensen also added eight digs. Senior Meghan Shoop (Cypress, Calif.) had 15 digs to pace the Blue backrow, while sophomore Izzy Seebold (Concord, N.C.) added six digs and 25 assists. Lauren Gedney (Huntersville, N.C.) had 10 kills and sophomore Nicole Doerges (San Marino, Calif.) chipped in with nine. 

Senior Emma Bartlett (Duxbury, Mass.) had eight kills to lead the Judges. Sophomore Kaitlyn Oh (Santa Clara, Calif.) finished with a match-high 18 digs. Brandeis tallied just 18 kills in the match, as junior Belle Scott (Portland, Ore.) chipped in with four and first year Amelia Oppenheimer (The Woodlands, Texas) added three kills and three aces. First year Talia Freund (La Jolla, Calif.) had 17 assists and three aces in the setback. 

Wellesley opened the first set with an 11-4 run and never looked back. The Blue extended the advantage to 18-9 before closing out a 25-11 victory on a kill by Gedney. Wellesley jumped to an 11-2 lead in the second set before holding off a push from the Judges that cut the score to 15-14. However, the Blue scored ten of the final 12 points in the match to clinch a 25-16 win and a 2-0 lead in the match. 

The Blue totaled a match-best .542 attack percentage in a 25-19 third set victory. Brandeis had the early edge in the frame, taking a 13-7 lead on an ace from Oppenheimer. The Judges pushed the lead to 17-12 before Wellesley rallied. Trailing by five, a serving run from Lizzy Jessen (Burbank, Calif.) helped the Blue tie the match at 17-17. The run ended on a service error but the Blue countered with an 8-1 run to end the match with a 25-19 victory. 

More information on the 2019 NEWMAC Volleyball Championships will be available after the conclusion of conference play this weekend.