Women’s Volleyball Bests University of St. Joseph (Conn.), 3-2

CHICOPEE, Mass. – Elms College sophomore setter Shannon Bolton (Shelton, Conn.) dished out 33 assists and junior libero Caitlyn Larvey (Greenfield, Mass.) notched a match-high 20 digs to help the Blazers secure a hard-fought, 3-2 (25-23, 24-26, 22-25, 25-17, 15-13) win over the University of St. Joseph (Conn.) in Tuesday evening's non-conference women's volleyball match at Picknelly Arena.

With the win, Elms improves to 2-10 on the season, while St. Joseph falls to 2-7 overall.

After Elms picked up a 25-23 set one victory, St. Joseph answered with two straight set victories to take a 2-1 lead in the match.

Leading 21-16 in the fourth stanza, the Blazers suffered a service error but scored the next four points highlighted by a service ace and a kill by senior opposite hitter Rachel Cowan (Ellington, Conn.) to give Elms a 25-17 win in the frame and force a fifth and deciding set.

The fifth set featured four tie scores and with the score set at 12-12, Elms capitalized on a service ace by Bolton and a kill from junior middle hitter JC Pickett (Chicopee, Mass.) to highlight a 3-1 run which sealed the Blazers' 3-2 victory.

Pickett finished with 13 kills – a team high – and added 10 digs, while junior middle hitter Christine Searles (Tolland, Mass.) followed with 12 kills and added four service aces. Sophomore outside hitter Alexandra Mack (Wilbraham, Mass.) added eight kills and 11 digs, while Pickett and Bolton also added four aces.

As a team, Elms served up 18 aces with three players notching four each. Larvey added five assists and three aces to go along with her match-best 20 digs.

The Blue Jays were led by a match-high, 18-kill and team-best 18-dig effort from Ciara Perez (Manchester, Conn.), while Megan Williams (Lakeville, Conn.) handed out 29 assists and dug 13 balls.

Emily Vigue (Lebanon, Conn.) and Elizabeth Tuazon (Mystic, Conn.) added 15 and 11 digs respectively, while Vigue contributed three of the team's seven aces.

Elms returns to non-conference action on Thursday, September 19 when it travels to MCLA for a 7:00 p.m. contest.