WELLESLEY, Mass. – Wellesley College volleyball earned a 3-0 sweep over Rivier University on Thursday night at Dorothy Towne Fieldhouse. The Blue won by scores of 25-17, 25-14 and 25-14.

Wellesley sophomore Kate Giang (Corte Madera, Calif.) led all players with 12 kills. Sophomore Evelyn Hill (Rocklin, Calif.) hit .350 to finish with eight kills and eight digs. First year Else Kunze-Hoeg (Eagan, Minn.) registered 33 assists and six digs. Senior Rachel Xu (Beijing, China) and first-year Logan Wilson (Woodside, Calif.) added six kills apiece. Junior Kaija Kunze-Hoeg (Eagan, Minn.) tallied a match best 16 digs. 

The visitors raced out to a 9-5 lead, capped by a Lily Sills (Carlisle, Mass.) kill. Wellesley responded with five straight points, including a pair of kills by Xu, for a 10-9 advantage. The Blue continued a strong run to go in front 17-13 and force a Raiders timeout. A Hill kill capped a 6-2 run by the Blue to clinch the set 25-17. 

After Rivier began the second set with an ace, Wellesley took over and cruised to a 25-14 victory. Back-to-back kills by Giang and Xu put the home team on top 16-10 to force another Rivier timeout. The Blue scored the next six points to put the set out of reach and take a 2-0 lead in the match. 

The teams traded the first few points of the third set before Wellesley began to pull away behind an efficient attack. Wellesley finished the match with a .320 hitting percentage.

Rivier was led by junior Ali Rivera's (Lowell, Mass.) eight kills. Sophomore Hannah Raab (Rochester, N.H.) picked up 13 digs.

The Blue will welcome Worcester State University on Saturday, September 7 at 1:00 PM. The Raiders compete in a tri-match with Wentworth and VTSU Castelton on the same day.