Northampton, Mass. - October 29, 2019 - The Mount Holyoke College volleyball team fell to Smith College in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) play on Tuesday night in Ainsworth Gymnasium. The Lyons fell by the set scores of 26-24, 25-19, 25-18.
With the loss, the Lyons drop to 5-19 on the year with an 0-9 record in NEWMAC play, while Smith improves to 8-20 on the year and is now 1-8 against league opponents.
Senior Sasha Simine (Kitchener, Ont.) and sophomore Sarah Bishop (Rutland, Mass.) each recorded seven kills in the setback, while junior Brayden Walden (McKinney, Texas) handed out 20 assists in the setback. Bishop also led the Lyons with 12 digs and two aces.
After falling behind 4-2 to begin the first set, Mount Holyoke College stormed back and made it 6-4 with a kill from Simine. Holding on to a 13-9 advantage, Smith went on a 5-1 run to even the score at 14, before taking a 20-19 lead. With the score even at 24 apiece, an attack error followed by a service ace gave Smith the 26-24 advantage and 1-0 match lead.
The two sides traded points to begin the second set, a series which included kills from Bishop and Marianne Simon (Miami, Fla.), before a five-point run from the Pioneers gave the hosts a 9-4 advantage. The Lyons would pull to within three on a kill from Bishop midway through the set, but Smith would eventually control a 22-17 advantage, which led to their 25-19 victory in the second frame.
Mount Holyoke College jumped out to a 7-4 lead in the third frame on a kill from Simine. After Smith evened the score at eight, the hosts continued to take a 12-9 advantage. Mount Holyoke College would regain a 15-13 lead on a kill from McKenna Crosby (Jonesborough, Tenn.), but Smith would answer with an 8-1 run to take a 20-16 lead late in the match. From there, the Lyons would pick up a point on an attack error, but Smith closed out the set with the last six points to seal the win.
Up next, Mount Holyoke College will return to Howard Gymnasium on Thursday, October 31 when the Lyons will host Fitchburg State at 7 p.m.
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