BOSTON, Mass. -- Wellesley College volleyball opened the New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) season with a 3-0 (25-18, 25-22, 25-21) victory over Emerson College on Tuesday night at Brown & Plofker Gym.

The Blue are now 6-3 overall and 1-0 in the NEWMAC. The setback snaps a four-game winning streak for Emerson and drops the Lions to 6-3 overall (0-1 NEWMAC). 

Sophomore Nicole Doerges (San Marino, Calif.) tallied her fourth double-double of the season, totaling 10 kills and a team-high 13 digs to lead the Blue. Junior Lauren Gedney (Huntersville, N.C.) finished with a match-high 13 kills on 28 attempts (.398), while Nikki Jensen (Castro Valley, Calif.) chipped in with nine kills and 11 digs. Sophomore Izzy Seebold (Concord, N.C.) added 26 assists, three aces, and seven digs. 

Junior Grace Tepper (Kensington, Md.) finished with 12 kills to lead Emerson. First year Logan Steenbergen (Glenview, Ill.) and sophomore Carolyn Vaimoso (Torrance, Calif.) added eight and seven kills, respectively, while first year Caroline Bond (Macungie, Pa.) dished out 29 assists. Vaimoso also tallied 11 digs. First year Anna Phillips (Peoria, Ariz.) finished with a match-high 18 digs in the setback for Emerson.

In the first set, the Blue broke a 9-9 tie with a 4-0 run to take a 13-9 lead following a Seebold ace. Wellesley was in control for the remainder of the set, going on to take a 25-18 win as sophomore Jessica Washington (Seattle, Wash.) put down the final kill. 

Wellesley fell behind in the second set, 13-10, but rallied for six straight points to take a 16-13 lead. Emerson countered, tying the set late, 19-19, but the Blue held off a late push from the hosts and grabbed a 2-0 lead in the match when a kill from Jensen earned Wellesley a 25-22 set victory. Wellesley went on to hit a match-best .258 in the third set to clinch the 3-0 sweep. 

Wellesley returns home to host Keene St. in non-conference action on Thursday, September 19, at 7:00 PM. Emerson will travel to Coast Guard for a 12:00 PM NEWMAC contest on Saturday, September 21.