Women's Volleyball Picks up Two Wins to Open 2018 Campaign

HENNIKER, N.H. – The Wentworth women's volleyball team posted two sweep victories over New England College and Mount Holyoke on Friday afternoon inside Bridges Gymnasium. The Leopards start the season at 2-0, while Mount Holyoke starts at 1-1, defeating the Pilgrims 3-1 in the final match, who drop to 0-2 this season. 

Match One – Wentworth 3, New England College 0

Junior Claire Quick (Mission Viejo, Calif.) posted a double-double with 10 kills and 10 digs, while classmate Leah Rogoz followed with eight kills and nine digs. On the defensive side, junior Lexie Cambray (Bedford, N.H.) hit the floor for 14 digs, and classmates Katie Clouse (Hudson Falls, N.Y.) and Maddy Tomastik (Portland Ore.) split setter duties with 17 and 13 assists, respectively. The Leopards were also heavy on blocks, totaling nine as a team, including two from junior Mackenna Salsbury (Bel Air, Md.).

New England College sophomore Dreka Griffin (Calera, Ala.) led the way for the Pilgrims with seven kills, while senior Meaghan Six (Manchester, N.H.) picked up 12 digs.

The Leopards broke away late in the first set to take a narrow 25-20 win before downing the host Pilgrims 25-8 in the final two sets. Trailing 19-18 in the opener, Wentworth called for time out on the bench and rattled off four straight points to lead 22-19. NEC came back with three points before a Rogoz kill set the Leopards up for the final three points and a 25-20 set win.

Wentworth hit a match-best .480 in the middle set, as seven straight points set the hosts up to lead 13-4 following a service ace from Quick. The seven-point surge would turn into a 15-2 run, as back-to-back kills from Rogoz put the Leopards up and away with a score of 20-6.

Clouse swung into three aces and use two kills from Rogoz to gain an early 5-0 lead on the Pilgrims in the closing frame. A 10-5 spurt with two kills apiece from junior Caroline Rupp (Sayville, N.Y.) and Quick gave Wentworth a 15-5 advantage, as the Pilgrims were able to score just three more points before the set closed at 25-8.

Match Two: Wentworth 3, Mount Holyoke 0

Wentworth downed the Lyons by set scores of 25-12, 25-17, and 25-16, paced by nine kills, seven digs, and three aces from Rogoz. Freshman Mary Zlotosch (Dover, N.H.) registered seven kills of her own, while Clouse and Tomastik recorded 19 and 13 assists, respectively.

Lyons' junior Sasha Simine's (Kitchener, Ont.) nine kills and .438 swinging percentage led the Lyons in the match, while senior Cameron Graham (Sarasota, Fla.) posted 13 digs defensively. Sophomore Brayden Walden (McKinney, Texas) accounted for the majority of Mount Holyoke's assists with 19.

The Leopards hit a blistering .412 in the first set and jumped to a quick 6-0 with Rogoz on the serve, who swung into two aces combined with a kill from Quick. A bad set from Mount Holyoke stretched Wentworth's lead to ten, 11-1, while an ace from Zlotosch and a kill from classmate Krisila Hammett (Boiling Springs, S.C.) kept the gap at 14 to end the set 25-11.

Clouse put the Leopards out in front early in the second set, as two aces and a kill from Salsbury gave the Black and Gold a 4-0 cushion. Freshman Abigail Mains (Goldendale, Wash.) put Wentworth up by double digits, 8-4, but the Lyons staged a quick comeback and rattled off five unanswered points to deadlock the set 9-9. Mount Holyoke would lead by as many as five points (19-14), but the Leopards switched gears as three kills from Rogoz off the hands of Tomastik gave Wentworth the 25-17 set win.

Both teams ended the match with a hard-fought battle, as the third set experienced seven ties before Wentworth ran away with nine straight points with Quick on the serve. Zlotosch and freshman Jade Iadarola (Miami, Fla.) each recorded two kills in the stretch, while Quick swung into back-to-back aces. Iadarola recorded two aces of her own in the Leopards' final rotation, ending the match with a 25-16 score.

The Leopards return to action on the road on Tuesday for a 7:00 p.m. match at WPI.

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