BOSTON, Mass. - In a battle of the Lions vs. Lyons, the Emerson women's volleyball team came out on top with a 3-0 NEWMAC victory over Mount Holyoke on Saturday afternoon at Brown & Plofker Gym. With the win, Emerson improves to 9-3, while Mount Holyoke slips to 2-5.
A mere one attack error from Emerson and five kills and four digs from freshman Bella Edwards (Palisades, Calif.) helped the Lions grab the 25-16 first set win. Emerson paced themselves to a 7-2 lead to begin the opening frame before Mount Holyoke rebounded and got within one of the Lions at 7-6. Before the Lyons could get comfortable, Emerson went on a 9-2 run that pushed the Lions' lead to eight at 17-9. Despite Mount Holyoke showing some late life in the later portions of the first frame, the Lyons never came closer than seven of Emerson. A pair of kills from both Edwards and senior Jules Augustine (Skaneateles, N.Y.) pushed the Lions to the first set win.
A kill percentage of .364 paced Emerson to the 25-15 second set win and went up 2-0 in the match. Emerson notched the 15-5 lead after kills from sophomore Fara Cohen (Morristown, N.J.) and Augustine. Mount Holyoke cut into Emerson's double digit lead and got the score within seven of the Lions at 15-8, but a 5-0 run put the lead at 20-8. The Lyons started to cut their way into the Lions lead once again and came within nine, but could not battle back.
Emerson banged out a match-high kill percentage of .556 and recorded no errors to lock up the 25-15 win in the final frame. The Lions and Lyons kept the start of the third set neck-and-neck and saw the Lyons grab its first lead of the match at 3-2 on an ace from sophomore Jamesa Allen (Orlando, Fla.). But a 5-0 run allowed Emerson to go up 9-4. Mount Holyoke powered its way back and came within one at 15-14 on a kill from Allen before the Lions put up three more points. After the Lyons got within three at 18-15, the Lions closed out the set with a 7-0 run that allowed Emerson to sweep the match, 3-0.
Edwards led the Lions with 19 kills, three aces and was a kill away from a double-double at nine digs, while junior Sam Harton (Cartersville, Ga.) led with 13 digs. Sophomore Kelley Guerra (Randolph, N.J.) followed Edwards with six kills and three blocks. Senior Annie Hall (Okemos, Mich.) also registered three blocks. Sophomore Moira Brennan (Glenview, Ill.) had 34 helpers. Cohen recorded five kills, seven digs, an ace and a block.
Sophomore Joy Maran (Santa Fe, N.M.) led Mount Holyoke with 11 kills, while sophomore Cameron Graham (Sarasota, Fla.) had 14 digs and three aces. Allen followed with eight kills, five digs and two service aces. Senior Natalie Lyon (Oakton, Va.) registered 22 helpers and six digs.
Both Emerson and Mount Holyoke return to the court Tuesday night. Emerson will head to WPI for a 7:00 p.m. road tilt. Mount Holyoke returns home for a NEWMAC match against MIT at 6:00 p.m.
