NORTHAMPTON, Mass. – Wellesley College volleyball concluded its regular season with a 3-1 (20-25, 25-22, 26-24, 25-17) setback to RV Smith College on Saturday.
Both teams will now await the release of the NEWMAC Women's Volleyball Championship to learn their quarterfinal opponent.
The Bears (24-5 Overall, 8-2 NEWMAC) were led by 16 kills from sophomore Alison Chapin (Temecula, Calif.). Sophomore Hana Suzuki (Chattanooga, Tenn.) and junior Skye Higashihara (Honolulu, Hawaii) worked together to get 41 assists. Senior Anna Feuer (Frederick, Md.) patrolled the net with five block assists.
The Blue (12-13 Overall, 4-6 NEWMAC) nearly saw a triple-double from junior Else Kunze-Hoeg (Eagan, Minn.). The junior finished with 13 kills, 20 assists, six digs and five aces. Junior Ella Mancuso (North Andover, Mass.) added 13 kills, senior Noelle Winn (San Francisco, Calif.) had 13 assists and seniors Caroline Meyer (Indianapolis, Ind.) and Evie Hill (Rocklin, Calif.) combined for 29 digs.
The Blue won a gritty first set, 25-20. After trailing 7-2, Wellesley turned the tides by pushing the pressure until the teams were tied up at 11 apiece. While still tied at 16-16, Wellesley slowly pulled ahead with a 6-1 stretch that featured an ace from Kunze-Hoeg and a Noel kill. A Smith service error ended the 25-20 frame with the underdog Blue making the early statement.
The second set was very even throughout with Wellesley having 15 kills to Smith's 16 and .417 hitting percentage. Neither team was able to put distance between itself and its foe until Smith went up 20-16. The visitors countered with an equalizing 4-0 swing bolstered by a trio of kills. At 22-22 a pair of Bears' kills and a set error allowed Smith to come away with the frame and knot up the match at 1-1.
Wellesley was up by a solid amount at the 11-6, 18-13 and 21-17 marks of the third set. But a late Smith 5-0 run shifted the momentum and gave the Bears a narrow advantage. A kill from Hill tied it up at 23-23, but an attack error gave the hosts a set point. Back against the wall, Mancuso gave the Blue hope with a critical kill. However, Smith snuffed out the effort with a bad set from Wellesley being followed by a set-clinching kill from Etheridge.
Smith put itself ahead 10-3 in the fourth and never looked back, closing out a competitive but comfortable frame to win the match.
