Blue Volleyball Picks Up Wins over Southern Maine, Keene State

KEENE, N.H. – Backed by consistent play on both offense and defense, Wellesley College volleyball won both halves of a tri-match with Southern Maine and Keene State with identical 3-0 scores on Saturday at Keene State University.

First year Kate Giang (Corte Madera, Calif.) had 21 kills across the two matches while classmate Madeline Zornek (Orlando, Fla.) had 34 assists and 11 service aces on the day. Sophomore libero Kaija Kunze-Hoeg (Eagan, Minn.) led the team with 30 digs over the six sets.

Wellesley 3, Southern Maine 0

Senior Kate Salembier (Sierra Madre, Calif.) and Giang each had nine kills, and Zornek added 20 assists and four service aces to help Wellesley win a convincing 3-0 (25-14, 25-9, 25-12) contest over Southern Maine.

At 4-4 in the first set, the Blue went on the offensive, winning six straight points. The Huskies (4-19 Overall) never came back within four points as Wellesley controlled a 25-14 first set that included a second 6-0 run.

Wellesley set the tone in the second set by winning six of the first seven points. The Blue totaled 13 kills on a .429 hitting percentage in a one-sided 25-9 second set. 

After leading 7-1 in the third set, Wellesley didn't rest on its laurels, finishing off a 25-12 set with four of the final five points.

Wellesley 3, Keene State 0

First year Evelyn Hill (Rocklin, Calif.) recorded eight kills and 18 digs, Kunze-Hoeg added 19 digs, and Zornek had seven service aces in a 3-0 (25-18, 25-7, 25-15) win over Keene State.

The Blue bolted out to a 7-1 lead in the first before the Owls (9-14 Overall) came back to tie the set at 10-10. The set remained tied at 16-16, when Wellesley put distance between itself and Keene State, finishing a 25-18 set on a 4-0 run.

The second set was all Wellesley, with the Blue winning 25-7 with eight service aces, including four from Zornek.

Wellesley again built up an early lead in the third set, this time up 11-4 before the Owls fought back to cut the lead to four at 15-11. The Blue had one more big offensive run, winning the final eight points of a 25-15 set.

Next up, the Blue travel to Emerson on Tuesday, October 24 at 7:00 PM for a NEWMAC contest.