Cao's Eight Kills Lead Women's Volleyball in Sweep over Curry

BOSTON, Mass. – Wentworth Institute of Technology's women's volleyball team collectively worked well together and breezed past the Colonels of Curry with sophomore Ashley Cao (Morrisville, N.C.) leading the team in kills with eight. The Leopards swept Curry 3-0 in CCC competiton on Tuesday night.

RECORDS:

• Wentworth (12-8, 5-1 CCC)
• Curry (4-18, 0-6 CCC)

WENTWORTH STAT LEADERS:

• Kills – Ashley Cao, 8; Riley Schoonmaker, 7; Riley Waggoner, 6
• Assists – Lexi Zabloudil, 18; Ashley Cao, 13
• Aces – Megan Davies, 5; Helen Barthe, 3
• Digs – Helen Barthe, 11; Ashley Cao, 5; Ema Thompson, 3
• Blocks – Riley Schoonmaker, 2

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• The Leopards had their share of mistakes to start the match, putting them down 4-0 in the first set. A kill by Cao ignited the Leopards and brought them back to a 4-3 deficit. A kill from senior Riley Waggoner (Simi Valley, Calif.) helped extend the Leopards' first lead of the match to 7-5. Four kills by sophomore Ema Thompson (Lewiston, Idaho) sank the sails for the Colonels, putting Wentworth up 17-7. Two more kills from Waggoner along with others from freshman Riley Schoonmaker (Montgomery, N.Y.) and sophomore Helen Barthe (Blythewood, S.C.) solidified the Leopards win at a 25-10 score and a 1-0 match lead.
• The Colonels got off to an early lead in the second set but a kill from Waggoner slowed their momentum. Kills from Cao, Waggoner, and junior Shelby Seage (Cocoa, Fla.) kept the Leopards neck-and-neck with the Colonels at 6-6. Three kills from Schoonmaker paced other kills by Cao and Barthe, giving the Leopards a 12-7 lead. After a series of errors by the Colonels, Schoonmaker notched another kill to extend the advantage to 16-9. Kills from Schoonmaker, Waggoner, and Seage in the final volleys of the set earned Wentworth a 25-13 win and a 2-0 match lead.
• The third set started with a 1-0 lead for the Colonels. However, a kill from Seage brought the Leopards ahead 2-1 shortly thereafter. A kill by Cao gave the Leopards a 4-3 lead. Two consecutive kills from junior Abby Warren (Gilmanton, N.H.) shot the Leopards ahead 8-7 after being down 7-6 two plays prior. Attack errors by the Colonels sandwiched kills by Cao and senior Viviann Goulet (North Kingstown, R.I.), giving the Leopards a 19-14 lead. Barthe struck two kills to bring the lead to 23-14 and a kill from Warren decided the match with a 25-16 score in the third set, giving Wentworth a decisive 3-0 victory.
  

THE SERIES:

• The Leopards have won six straight meetings between the two teams and lead the all-time series 12-1 with their lone loss dating back to 2015.

NEXT UP:

• Wentworth hosts Rhode Island College on Thursday night in non-conference competition.

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