Women’s Volleyball Rallies Back to Take Mitchell to Five Sets, but Lose in the Final Set

CHICOPEE, Mass. - The Elms College Women's Volleyball team hosted Mitchell College in a conference matchup Wednesday evening at Picknelly Arena.

BASICS
Score: Elms College 2 (10, 19, 25, 25, 16) | Mitchell College 3 (25, 25, 14, 17, 18)
Records: Blazers 2-16, 1-6 (GNAC) | Mariners 6-10, 2-3 (GNAC)

HOW IT HAPPENED

The opening set would see Mitchell gain the early lead, after a kill by senior Francesca Dirienzo (West Springfield, Mass.), then the Elms offense would respond by tying the set 7-7 after two kills by junior Alejandra Marin (Dorado, P.R.) and a kill from junior Angelica Marks (Miami, Fla.). The Mariners would then take a large lead, even with kills from Marks and sophomore Quiana Gibbs (Porterville, Cali.) would not be enough as Mitchell would take the first set 25-10.

The second set would see the Blazers score the first points after back-to-back errors by the Mariners. Mitchell would then respond with four-straight points until a kill by Gibbs would shortly pause their offense but the Mariners would quickly regain momentum and extend their lead. Elms would call a timeout and the Blazers offense would be awoken after kills from Gibbs, Marks, and Dirienzo and a service ace from marks to bring the score to 16-14. Mitchell would take the set 25-19, but kills from junior Alysha Izquierdo (Holyoke, Mass.) and Marks would give some offensive life for Elms.

The third set would see the Blazers earn an early 3-1 lead, after a service ace from junior Jaylen Holman (Las Cruces, N.M.) and a kill by Dirienzo. The Mariners offense would then take the lead, but kills by Dirienzo and Marks, along with a block by Marks would tie the set 7-7. The two conference foes would battle for the lead until Elms saw kills by Marin and Holman, along with a service ace by Izquierdo, would secure the third set for the Blazers 25-14.

The fourth set would begin with Elms with an early 5-0 lead, after kills from Dirienzo and Gibbs, Mitchell would then have a short-lived offensive rally, but a kill from Marin, Marks, and Holman, with a service ace from Izquierdo, would keep the lead for the Blazers. The Elms offense would continue to extend their lead after kills by Gibbs, Dirienzo, Izquierdo, Marks, and Marin, and a service ace from Gibbs to help Elms secure the set 25-17.

The fifth and final set of the opening match would see the Blazers score the first three-points, including a kill from Marin. The Mariners would tie the set, a kill by Dirienzo would shortly give the lead back to Elms, but Mitchell would then take a short lead, but the two sides would then battle for the remainder of the set, but Mitchell would take the final set 18-16 to win the conference match 3-2.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Dirienzo made 12 kills and 20 digs.

• Marks also made 12 kills, three digs, a service ace and a block.

• Holman created 41 assists, 15 digs, two kills, and a service ace.

• Marin had 38 digs and 10 kills.

• Gibbs created 20 digs, seven kills, two assists, and a service ace.

UP NEXT: The Elms Women's Volleyball team will host Saint Joseph's College, Maine in a conference match on Tuesday, October 15th at 6 PM at Picknelly Arena.

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