CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - Lesley University overcame a 25-15 Game 1 defeat to win the next two sets convincingly, 25-16 and 25-14, before holding on for a 25-23 Game 4 victory Wednesday night over Regis College in New England Collegiate Conference women's volleyball play.
The Lynx, winners of three in a row and tied for first place in the NECC at 3-0 (5-9 overall), served a season-high 20 aces, led by senior Kaitlyn Miller's (Leesport, Pa.) match-best seven. Fellow senior Megan Ortwein(Easton, Pa.) tied for game-high honors with nine kills, and freshman setter Donna Niosi (Quincy, Mass.) led all players with 21 assists.
For the Pride, now 7-15 (1-3 NECC), Olivia Foley (Andover, Mass.) led the way with nine kills and led all players with a .231 hitting percentage. Sara Gold (North Hollywood, Calif.) led the team with 15 digs, while Marilia Ramos (Chimotle, Peru) followed with 14.
A Niosi ball handling error forced a Lynx timeout trailing 12-7 in Game 1, but Lesley responded with a pair of kills from Danielle Johnson (Waterford, Conn.) to pull within 20-14, before Regis scored four straight to pull away with a 25-15 win. For the set, the Lynx hit a match-low -.151 with 11 attack errors, but the Lynx would turn that around quickly in the second set.
With the second set tied at 4-4, Lesley junior Katrina Stroganoff (Cedar Grove, N.J.) entered the game and promptly fired off three-straight service aces to swing Lesley on top 7-4, and the Lynx would lead the remainder of the way. Two of Miller's five kills extended the lead to 23-13, and the Lesley attack hit .103 with 11 kills on 29 attempts for a 25-16 Game 2 win.
Lesley opened the third set with a 6-1 lead with Ortwein at serve, but Regis responded to tie the set at 9-9 on a pair of Gold aces. Another of Stroganoff's four aces on the night put the Lynx back on top 11-9, and Miller added two more aces to go up 15-10 as the Lynx coasted to a 25-14 victory.
After spotting Lesley the first four points of Game 4, Regis used a pair of Lynx errors to tie the set at 4-4. A Lesley service error gave Regis its first lead of the set at 15-14, forcing a Tricia Lawler timeout, and back-to-back Pride attack errors sent the Lynx back on top 21-20.
Miller's seventh and final ace fell in off the top of the net to extend the lead to 22-20. After a kill error from Lesley's Alyson Finbow (Fair Lawn, N.J.) brought the Pride to within one at 24-23, Finbow quickly redeemed herself with a match-winning kill, sealing the 25-23 Game 4 win.
Regis returns to action on Saturday when they travel to Mount Ida for a tri-match with the Mustangs and Curry College starting at 10:00 a.m.
Release courtesy of Lesley University Sports Information