WESTON, Mass. – The Wentworth Institute of Technology women's volleyball team got back on the winning track on Saturday as the Leopards took their third tri-match of the season, defeating host Regis, 3-1, and sweeping Lesley, 3-0.
WENTWORTH 3, REGIS 1
Sophomore Leah Rogoz (Woodridge, Ill.), sophomore Claire Quick (Mission Viejo, Calif.), and senior Caroline Shea (Abington, Mass.) combined for 40 kills as the Leopards prevailed in four sets.
Wentworth got off to a fast start, hitting .444 (12-0-27) in the first set. After falling behind, 3-0, to open the match, the Leopards used an 11-3 run to take a 14-6 lead after an attack error. Regis pulled within five at 16-11, however, three straight Leopard points, including ills from Quick and Rogoz, extended the lead to 19-11. A service error gave the Pride a point back but six straight Wentworth points closed out the set, 25-12.
After a service error snapped a 3-all tie and gave Wentworth a 4-3 lead in the second set, the Leopards took a 7-3 lead and would extend their lead to as much as 10 (17-7) after a kill from Shea. Regis scored four of the next five points and narrowed the gap to 18-11, however, the Black & Gold scored seven of the next nine points and closed out the set on back-to-back kills from Shea to take a 25-13 win and a 2-0 lead.
The third set saw Wentworth take a 4-1 lead after a sophomore Lexie Cambray (Bedford, N.H.) ace, however Regis responded with eight straight points to take a 9-4 lead. Back-to-back Leopard points saw the visitors trail 9-6 but the Pride built the lead to five at 14-9. A 7-3 Leopard run brought the Black & Gold within a point at 17-16 after a Rogoz kill but Regis responded with a 7-2 run of its own to extend the lead to 24-18. A block from sophomore Samantha Lassiter (Rogers, Ark.), senior Katelyn Carlson (Stratford, Conn.), and junior Lillie Clark (Vista, Calif.) made it 24-19 and Rogoz and freshman Makenna Salsbury (Bel Air, Md.) teamed up for a block to make it 24-20. However, an attack error gave Regis the 25-20 win.
After falling behind to start the fourth set, 4-0, and again, at 8-7, the Leopards rolled off six straight points and took a 13-8 lead after a Regis attack error. The pride scored four straight points and came within a point at 13-12, but a 9-2 Wentworth run extended the lead to 23-14 and the Black & Gold closed out the match with a 25-16 win.
Rogoz finished with 17 kills, nine digs, and two blocks while hitting .429. Quick had a double-double with 14 kills and 22 digs while also serving two aces. Shea had nine kills in the match. Cambray served four aces and had 12 digs, Lassiter and Salsbury each contributed three blocks, sophomore Maddy Tomastik (Portland, Ore.) had 21 assists and two aces, while classmate Katie Clouse (Hudson Falls, N.Y.) had 18 helpers.
WENTWORTH 3, LESLEY 0
Freshman Caroline Rupp (Sayville, N.Y.) paced Wentworth in its second sweep of Lesley on the season as she notched a career-high 13 kills while hitting .429.
The Lynx opened the first set by taking a 6-4 lead, however the lead would be short lived as the Leopards used a 9-2 run and took a 13-8 lead on a kill from Quick. After Lesley made it 14-10, Wentworth rolled off seven straight points, with six coming as Quick was on the service line, to take a 21-12 lead and captured the set, 25-13. For the second straight match the Leopards did not make an error in the opening set and hit .478 (11-0-23).
Wentworth opened the second set on an 11-4 run with freshman Kayla Chen (Irvine, Calif.) serving three straight points, including an ace which capped off the run. Lesley closed the gap to 14-11 and crept within a pair at 17-15. Four straight Wentworth points extended the lead to 21-15, however, the Lynx countered with three points of their own to make it 21-18. A kill from senior Kayla Gendreau (Hudson, N.H.) halted the run and an ace from Chen and a kill from Rupp made it 24-18 before the Black & Gold took a 2-0 lead with a 25-20 win.
The third set featured seven ties and five lead changes and neither team had more than a two-point lead in the opening portion of the frame. The final tie came at 10-all before a service error gave the Leopards an 11-10 lead. That point springboarded Wentworth to a 12-2 run and the Leopards took a 22-12 lead when Cambray served her second straight ace. The Leopards closed out the match with a 25-13 win.
Junior Abigail Ahern (Barrington, N.H.) had four kills, two blocks, and 15 digs in the win while four other Leopards recorded three kills. Carlson had three kills and two blocks, Gendreau had three ills and two blocks, Quick had three kills and two aces, and Lassiter had three kills on five swings for a .600 attack percentage. Cambray served five aces and had 12 digs and Clouse and Chen had 10 assists apiece.
Wentworth (15-2) is at Salem State on Tuesday night.
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Regis
Lesley