Women’s Volleyball Prevails in Sweep over Wellesley

WELLESLEY, Mass. – After winning the first two sets, Regis College needed a significant rally in the third set to sweep Wellesley College, 3-0 (25-21, 25-19, 25-23), Tuesday night in a non-conference women's collegiate volleyball match at the Dorothy Towne Fieldhouse.

Ayla Albers (San Diego, Calif.) led the Pride with 10 kills and three service aces along with seven digs, while Grace Fabiano (Greenland, N.H.) finished with eight kills and four total blocks. Ahnasia Mckinney (Chelmsford, Mass.) collected six kills, 14 assists, 12 digs, and three block assists, with Alexandra Rivera (Bristol, Conn.) dishing out 15 assists. Defensively, Kamdyn Tenorio (Irvine, Calif.) paced the backline with 19 digs, followed closely by Avery Mola (Cheshire, Conn.) with 17 digs to go along with six kills and two service aces.

Led by Caroline Meyer with two kills, Wellesley scored four of the first five points of the third set before Regis battled back to tie the set at 8-8 on a block by Mckinney and Lauren Tuttle (Stratham, N.H.). The Blue rattled off eight unanswered points, led by Kate Giang with two kills and a block assist, to open a 17-9 advantage.

Down 21-16 after another kill from Giang, the Pride rattled off a 9-2 scoring run to close out the set and the match, starting with kills by Mola and Mckinney. Another kill by Mckinney pulled Regis into a 22-22 tie, the Pride took the lead on a Wellesley attack error, and Regis would complete the comeback thanks to a block by Mckinney and Tuttle.

Wellesley (3-1) took an early 6-4 lead in the opening set before Regis put together a 10-2 scoring run, led by Mola with two kills and two service aces. The Blue responded with a 10-4 scoring stretch, paced by Giang with five kills, to tie the set at 18-18, put the Pride would go on a 7-3 scoring run to close out the first set, with Mckinney earning two kills and a block assist in that span.

Two kills each by Giang and Logan Wilson allowed the Blue to grab the early 5-2 lead in the second set before Regis scored the next three points, featuring a block by Fabiano and Bella Karpicz (Berkley, Mass.). An 8-3 scoring run gave Wellesley a 13-8 lead, but the Pride came right back with their own 10-3 scoring run to pull ahead, 18-16. After a kill by Evelyn Hill, Regis scored the final four points of the second set as it forced the Blue into four straight errors.

Giang led all players with 18 kills, and Else Kunze-Hoeg notched a double-double with 22 assists and 12 digs. Kaija Kunze-Hoeg paced the Wellesley backline with 14 digs, but the Blue were unable to extend their winning streak past three matches as they suffered their first set losses of the season.

Regis College (6-3) opens conference play with a trip to Vermont to face Norwich University Saturday, Sept. 14, starting at 11 a.m. At 1 p.m. Saturday, the Pride are scheduled to face MCLA in a non-league contest as part of a tri-match hosted by the Cadets.