Women's Volleyball Sinks Mitchell In Conference Opener

Chris Kendrick (@CKendrick86)

NEW LONDON, Conn. – The Elms College women's volleyball team collected their third straight victory, opening their New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) slate with a 3-2 win over host Mitchell College (25-21, 22-25, 25-17, 20-25, 15-13) at the Yarnall Athletic Center Tuesday night. With the win, the Blazers improve to 4-12 overall and 1-0 in the NECC, while the Mariners drop to 0-2 in league play and 3-9 on the season.

The Blazers collected an early 11-4 lead in the first set behind strikes from freshman Haley Asselin (South Hadley, Mass.), sophomore Danielle Redding (Las Vegas, Nev.), and junior Kate Moriarty (Agawam, Mass.). The Mariners cut the deficit to 11-7, but Elms rebuilt a 16-8 advantage on a pair of service aces from Moriarty. The Blazers used a trio of kills from Redding to put the Mariners in a 24-13 hole, but Mitchell staved off the set finish with five straight points until an error gave Elms the 25-21 win.

Mitchell controlled a 7-1 advantage to open the second set, but the Blazers battled back behind kills from Redding and freshman Hannah Adams (Deerfield, Mass.) to trim the gap to 14-12. The Mariners padded the lead with an 8-3- run, featuring a pair of kills from senior Amanda Rowan (Sandy Hook, Conn.). The Blazers closed the gap down the stretch on strikes from Redding and Adams, but Mitchell held off Elms for the 25-22 win.

Both squads opened the third set with five-point spurts to even the score at 5-5. Tied at 8-8, the Mariners pulled ahead on consecutive service aces from junior Lauren Tompkins (Prospect, Conn.), but Elms rallied and an ace from Moriarty knotted things at 12-12. Mitchell regained a 15-14 lead until the Blazers rattled off eight straight points, powered by four aces from Adams, to gain a 22-15 lead.  Elms wrapped up the 25-17 win on a pair of kills from Redding.

Mitchell controlled a 9-3 lead to open the fourth set, but five straight points by Elms closed the gap to 9-8. The Mariners raced ahead with 10-1 run to gather a 19-9 lead. The Blazers whittled away at the cushion as Redding delivered a trio of kills during a 10-3 by Elms to make it a 22-19 match. The Mariners fended off the Blazers in the final points to force a fifth set with a 25-20 win. 

The squads alternated runs to open the final frame with Elms holding a 4-3 edge. The Blazers kept the Mariners within striking distance behind kills from Redding. Trailing 10-8, Elms regained control as Adams slammed a pair of kills to put the Blazers ahead 11-10. Mitchell grabbed a 12-11 lead on an ace from junior Janelle Rice (Meriden, Conn.), but Adams delivered an ace and kill, followed by tallies from Redding and Asselin to lock up the 15-13 set win, and 3-2 match victory.

Redding paced the Blazers attack with a match-high 19 kills and 13 digs. Adams grabbed a team-high 19 digs with 13 kills and five aces, while Asselin added seven kills and nine digs. Senior Carolyn Campbell (Millers Falls, Mass.) logged a double-double with a match-high 34 assists and 10 digs, and Moriarty contributed nine digs and three aces.

Junior Myia Williams (Roselle, N.J.) led Mitchell with a team-high 14 kills with six digs. Rice tallied 18 assists, six kills, six digs and three aces, while Rowan notched nine kills. Sophomore Colby Zitoli (Walpole, Mass.) snared a match-high 27 digs in the loss.

The Blazers will look to remain in the win column with a non-conference road trip to Mount Holyoke Thursday for a 6:00 p.m. match. Mitchell hosts Bay Path in NECC action Saturday at 11:00 a.m.

ELMS VOLLEYBALL