NORTHFIELD, Vt. - Regis College closed out the regular season with a split of its matches Saturday, losing to host Norwich University before defeating Anna Maria College in Great Northeast Athletic Conference women's volleyball action at Andrews Hall.
Regis College (20-12, 9-4 GNAC) is the fifth seed in the 2022 GNAC Women's Volleyball Tournament and will travel to face fourth seed Simmons University in a quarterfinal match Tuesday, Nov. 1, starting at 7 p.m.
REGIS 3, ANNA MARIA 0 (25-10, 25-18, 25-9)
Rita Dow (Nashua, N.H.) once again led the Pride offensively with nine kills without committing an attack error for a .529 hitting percentage, while Valerie Whalen (Stoughton, Mass.) also did not commit an attack error while earning seven kills for a .583 hitting percentage. Ahnasia Mckinney (Chelmsford, Mass.) finished with 18 assists, Kaitlyn Miller (Nottingham, N.H.) earned a season-high six service aces, and Kamdyn Tenorio (Irvine, Calif.) led the Pride with 17 defensive digs, followed by Toni Ondris (Mineola, N.Y.) with a career-high 13 digs.
Regis scored the first six points of the match, including consecutive service aces by Tenorio, and then extended its lead to 11-2 on back-to-back kills by Dow. Anna Maria closed to within six points at 13-7 on consecutive kills by Sarah Burt, but the Pride would close out the opening set with a 12-3 scoring run, featuring three aces from Miller.
The Pride opened a 4-1 lead in the second set thanks to two kills by Dow and one from Whalen, and then Regis put together a 10-3 scoring run later in the set to extend its lead to 20-10. Anna Maria rattled off an 8-2 scoring run, led by a kill and three service aces from Bella Kozciak, to close to within four points before the Pride scored the final three points of the second set, including a block by Whalen and Olivia Pacheco (Waterford, Conn.).
Consecutive service aces by Miller allowed the Pride to grab the early lead in the third set, and then Regis went on an 11-3 scoring run, with Pacheco earning a kill, a block assist, and a service ace along the way. The Pride put the set and the match away with a 7-1 scoring run, capped by two solo blocks from Pacheco.
Anna Maria (3-19, 0-12 GNAC) was led by Kozciak with seven kills and four service aces, but the AMCATS finished with more attack errors (20) than kills (16), plus they allowed the Pride to earn 13 service aces in the match. Defensively, Serena Dennis led Anna Maria with a match-high 21 digs.
NORWICH 3, REGIS 1 (19-25, 25-15, 25-15, 27-25)
Dow became the fourth player in program history to reach the 600-kill mark for her career, collecting a team-high 15 kills along with four total blocks. Tenorio notched her second consecutive 30-dig performance to go along with seven kills and three service aces, Mckinney earned 26 assists, five kills, three total blocks, and nine digs, and Aryam Serrano-Monserrate (Lake Forest, Calif.) contributed a career-high 21 defensive digs.
The Pride jumped out to a 7-1 lead in the opening set, led by two kills and a block assist from Kate Montigny (Shrewsbury, Mass.). After a kill by Dow gave Regis a 17-10 advantage, the Cadets scored five straight points, including two kills from Ana Lopez, to pull within two points. Regis scored five of the next six points to pull away and eventually clinched the set on a kill by Montigny and a service ace from Tenorio.
Norwich (14-8, 7-5 GNAC) won the first three points of the second set, but Regis rattled off a 7-2 scoring run, led by four kills from Dow, to pull ahead, 10-8. The Cadets responded with nine unanswered points to take control of the set, eventually tying the match at 1-1 on a kill by Lopez, a block by Leah Matthewson and Sarah Farnum, and a service ace from Julia Dorr.
Two kills from Matthewson helped the Cadets open a 5-1 advantage in the third set, and then a 9-2 scoring run later in the set extended the Norwich lead to 19-8. The Pride fought back with a 5-1 scoring run, but the Cadets came right back, closing out the set on a 5-2 run, capped by a kill from Abby Kanaga.
The Pride committed three straight attack errors early in the fourth set to fall behind 10-8, but then recovered with a 10-2 scoring run, capped by a kill from Dow and a service ace by Ondris. A kill by Ayla Albers (San Diego, Calif.) brought about set point for the Pride at 24-19, but the Cadets scored five straight points to extend the set. Regis created another set point opportunity on a kill by Dow, but Norwich closed out the set and the match thanks in part to a block by Matthewson and Addison Schroeder.
Lopez led the Cadets with 14 kills, with Matthewson collecting 10 kills as Sarah Farnum dished out 34 assists to go along with nine digs. Defensively, Laura Farnum led all player with 35 digs, while Maggie McNeil contributed 16 digs to go along with six kills.