Waggoner, Thompson Pace Women's Volleyball in Win over Emmanuel

BOSTON, Mass. – Senior Riley Waggoner (Simi Valley, Calif.) had 14 kills and hit .462 while sophomore Ema Thompson chipped in with 11 kills and hit .643 as the Wentworth Institute of Technology women's volleyball team defeated Emmanuel, 3-1, in non-conference action Thursday night.

RECORDS:

• Emmanuel (1-4)
• Wentworth (4-3)

WENTWORTH STAT LEADERS:

• Kills – Riley Waggoner, 14; Ema Thompson, 11, Helen Barthe, 9; Riley Schoonmaker, 9
• Assists – Lexi Zabloudil, 28; Ashley Cao, 17
• Aces – Lexi Zabloudil, 4; Megan Davies, 3; Ema Thompson, 3; Peyton Tague, 3
• Digs – Helen Barthe, 10; Peyton Tague, 10
• Blocks – Riley Waggoner, 2; Riley Schoonmaker, 2

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Wentworth took a 7-3 lead in the early part of the first set, with Waggoner scoring three of the Leopards' seven points, all on kills. The Leopards extended their lead to 17-10, thanks to a kill from Lexi Zabloudil (London, Ohio) kill. Out of a timeout, Emmanuel scored two straight points but three straight points, capped off by a block from Waggoner and Zabloudil, made it 20-12. The Saints scored four of the next six points, however, kills from Waggoner and senior Viviann Goulet (North Kingstown, R.I.) and an ace from sophomore Helen Barthe (Blythewood, S.C.) gave the Black & Gold a 25-16 win.
• A kill from Waggoner and a pair of aces from Zabloudil opened the second set for Wentworth, which extended its lead to 9-6 after an Emmanuel service error. The Saints came back to tie the set at 9-all and took an 11-10 lead before a 6-1 Leopard run put the hosts back on top, 17-12. The Black & Gold led 18-12 after a kill from Goulet, however, Emmanuel went on a 9-3 run to tie the set at 21-all. Trailing 23-22, the Saints scored the next two points to have set point at 24-23, however, an attack error tied the set at 24-all. Wentworth staved off set point at 25-24 but Emmanuel closed out the set, 27-25, with two straight points.
• Hitting .423 as a team, Wentworth took a 2-1 lead with a 25-13 win in the third set. The Leopards jumped out to a 7-2 lead after a kill from Thompson before Emmanuel came back within one at 10-9. A kill from Goulet put the Black & Gold ahead, 17-12, and came in the middle of a 12-2 run to close out the set. Thompson hit a perfect 1.000 (6-0-6) in the set while Barthe had four kills.
• The opening of the fourth set was back and forth, with Emmanuel taking a 7-5 lead. Six straight points, capped off by a Thompson ace, gave Wentworth an 11-7 lead. The Saints closed the gap to as few as two on four occasions, including at 15-13, however, the Leopards rolled off five straight points, which included two kills from Thompson, to make it 20-13, before Wentworth took the match with a 25-16 win. The Leopards hit .379 as a team in the set.

THE SERIES:

• Tonight was the 23rd known all-time meeting between the two teams. Wentworth has won three in row. Emmanuel leads the all-time series, 20-3.

NEXT UP:

• Wentworth travels to Hoboken, N.J., to compete in the Castle Point Challenge. The Leopards first square off against Montclair State on Friday at 4:00 p.m.

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